I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Rose/House by Arkady Martine Published by Tordotcom on March 11 2025
Genres: Adult, Science fiction
Pages: 128
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: A surreal, locked room murder mystery set in an impossible house, Rose/House is a beautifully written puzzle of a story.
“There is, as there has always been for Selene inside one of Basit’s buildings, a sense of hypnosis. Of being led, of being let into a a secret, a series of revelations, stripping away preconceptions of the shape of a building, the play of light.”
I’m so glad Tordotcom decided to rerelease Rose/House, which I may not have read otherwise. Rose/House is weird in the best possible way, and I really enjoyed it. It’s also my first time reading Arkady Martine’s work, and it won’t be my last.
The story takes place a hundred years or so in the future in the small California desert town of China Lake (more on that later). Basit Deniau was a famous and innovative architect whose greatest creation was Rose House, a living house that is an AI intelligence (as opposed to a house with AI). In his will, Basit left Rose House to a former student of his, Selene Gisil, who is the only person Rose House will allow inside. Selene is granted access only once a year for a week, and during that time she’s allowed to go through Basit’s archival drawings and journals. No one has been able to recreate Basit’s unique AI technology, and after his death architects and journalists clamor for any scraps of information they can get on the reclusive genius.
One day Detective Maritza Smith gets a call from Rose House informing her that someone has been murdered inside the house. This is a mystery because the house should be empty. The only logical suspect is Selene Gisil, but she has a solid alibi. Maritza knows she has to get inside the house to investigate the murder, and Selene is the only one who can help.
But once inside, things only get weirder. Can Maritza solve the murder? Or will Rose House refuse to give up its secrets?
Rose/House is short and the cast of characters is fairly small, but it’s just the right amount for the length of the story, in my opinion. In addition to Rose House (who is definitely a character in the story), Selene and Maritza, we also meet another detective named Oliver Torres and a journalist named Alanna Ott, who have their own side story that ties into the murder investigation. And I can’t forget Basit Deniau himself, whose body is still in the house, although Rose House has turned his remains into a fist-sized diamond. I loved Maritza’s story the most, since she’s determined to break through Rose House’s defenses and figure out the murder.
The author calls Basit’s AI structures “haunts,” as if the buildings themselves are haunted by AI. It was such a weird concept but it somehow made sense, especially once we go inside the house and experience the odd interior. I’ve always loved stories that play with architecture and the idea that a house might be completely different on the inside, and Martine’s descriptions are surreal and dreamlike. Even Maritza has the sense that once inside, she may never escape Rose House—after all, the last intruder died there—so the reader has yet another mystery to ponder.
It’s the setting, though, that captured my attention from the very first page. China Lake is a real place, and it just happens to be where I was born and raised (technically, China Lake is part of a restricted naval base with a civilian town attached). Why Arkady Martine chose this location for her story I have no idea (although I’m tempted to write and ask her!). At first I brushed it off as coincidence, but she includes several real life details (like nearby highway 395, its proximity to Los Angeles, and the “old naval base,” not to mention the secluded desert setting) that can’t be anything but the China Lake I remember. California readers may recognize the setting, but I doubt many others will, which makes this a very cool and personal detail for me.
The story becomes more bizarre and metaphysical the longer Maritza spends in the house, and things get a little confusing at this point. But Rose House is such a strange entity anyway, it sort of makes sense. Readers who appreciate stellar writing and weird mysteries that may or may not be completely solved at the end will not want to miss this.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
I didn’t look up China Lake, because for some reason I thought it was a fictional place – it’s so neat that it exists, and even neater that you managed to take a trip down memory lane because you grew up there!
I found the story and the writing to be very atmospheric, though some turns of phrase gave me pause. Not sure what the message is (I’m rereading the book at the moment to see if I get a better sense of it), but the story is one of a kind for sure…though I saw some readers on GR comparing it to The Haunting of Hill House, which I haven’t read.
How weird yet awesome is it that this story is set in the place you were raised? I’d be so started yet excited. Sounds like a fantastic read!
This reminds me of House of Leaves. What a weird and interesting concept for a mystery.
The only thing I know about China Lake is there’s a grenade launcher named for it. Or vise-versa? I assume you can clear this up for me;)
I hope you write and ask her—I’m curious to know!!
The locked room mystery fan in me is absolutely intrigued by the idea of this book. It sounds like a twist on the genre that I’ve not come across before
This sounds fascinating! And I do love a good novella. I’ve never read this author before either, but this sounds like it could be a good place to start.
Fun. Thanks for sharing!
Anne – Books of My Heart
That must be amazing to read about the town you were born! And indeed the concept is bizarre but it seems to have worked splendidly for you Tammy!