A transgressive, lyrical and deeply moving literary debut about forbidden gay love in Iran

Anjir and Zal have been together ever since they first knew what love was. But living in Iran, the two men must keep their relationship hidden, potentially on pain of death. When Zal gets attacked after being caught with another man in public, Anjir is heartbroken by the betrayal but chooses to forgive as the pair formulate a plan for the future. The Iranian government will partially pay for a trans person's gender-confirming surgeries and Anjir, who's always identified with the mythical gender-changing Tiresias, will become a woman. Together they can move away from Tehran for a fresh start as husband and wife. Then Zal vanishes, leaving only a cryptic note behind. Anjir embarks on a quest through the queer underground of Tehran in search for the other man, hoping he will lead him to Zal. But someone is tailing Anjir too and the further into Zal's secrets he delves, the more he suspects that further violence may soon be necessary. A queer noir-infused love story of violence, vengeance and desire, Medusa of the Roses is a provocative, propulsive novel with the wild intensity of a fever dream.

"Video artist Sinaki's stunning debut follows two gay lovers struggling to survive in modern-day Tehran. In alternately gritty and sensual prose, Sinaki perfectly captures Anjir's morbid state of mind and his inability to separate love from pain. The narrative teems with references to Greek mythology, Persian folktales, and Old Hollywood as Sinaki considers the psychological toll that living under an ever-present threat of death can take. This is a must." - Publishers Weekly Starred Review