Utama

by Ng Yi-Sheng

Finalist for the 2025 Epigram Books Fiction Prize

A mythic historical novel by two-time Singapore Literature Prize winner.

Utama reimagines the rise of Sang Nila Utama through the eyes of those who shaped his path— exiles, warriors and queens. From the Chola invasion to a fateful sea crossing, ambition and betrayal forge an empire. As dragons fall and a sea goddess awakens, the Lion City is born.

360 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2025

About the author

Ng Yi-Sheng is a poet, fictionist, playwright, journalist and activist. He was awarded the Singapore Literature Prize for his debut poetry collection, last boy (2006). His other publications include a spiritual sequel to that work, called A Book of Hims (2017); a compilation of his best spoken-word pieces, Loud Poems for a Very Obliging Audience (2016); the bestselling non-fiction book, SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century (2006); and a novelisation of the Singapore gangster movie, Eating Air (2008). He also co-edited GASPP: A Gay Anthology of Singapore Poetry and Prose (2010) and Eastern Heathens: An Anthology of Subverted Asian Folklore (2013). He recently completed his MA in creative writing at the University of East Anglia and is currently pursuing his PhD at Nanyang Technological University. Lion City is his first fiction collection, published in 2018 by Epigram Books.

Reviews

[Ning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kudos to Ng for attempting fiction set in pre-colonial Singapore. I was quite excited for this. It was quite evident Ng put considerable effort into historical accuracy and weaving together local lore. But unfortunately, that is where the depth ends.

The plot unfolds quite mechanically and procedurally, rather than as a flowing narrative. Events feel disconnected, characters arrive, meet someone, receive explanation, exchange some dialogue, lacking in emotional or dramatic momentum. Characterisation was equally weak. With a large cast squeezed into just over 200 pages, no character receives sufficient room to breathe. This was a lost opportunity to present them as complex individuals, leaving us never quite invested in any one of them (more depth to Empuk and Malini pls??). Some creative liberties with the source material might have improved the narrative.

[Zurairi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I’ve found my new obsession: retelling of Nusantara myths. This version of Sang Nila Utama does it in the most magical and magnificent way…reducing the fabled discovery of Singapura to a mere footnote is a time-spanning epic. The real heroes of this book aren’t who you thought it’d be: a mere couple of women who had a roller coaster of lives.

[Ming Suan Ong · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars maybe. I wasn’t sure what to expect as I know nothing about Sang Nila Utama or even that he was the founder of Singapore but I really enjoyed this. It’s very well written and while the history is a bit complicated (so I kept forgetting characters and what happened in the previous section) the stories themselves were immersing and attention grabbing. Part 1 starts in 1025 where we follow a Chinese scholar who together with many others have been exiled for treason - and ends up in Temasek. The second part is probably the most interesting as it follows the lives of two widows Empuk and Malini who end up being married to Sang Nila Utama’s brothers when the 3 of them manifest in their fields turning everything gold. Their appearance is v magical and myth like even though they are meant to be human. While the book is ostensibly about Utama it is told through the lives of the people who have been affected by him - especially the 40 or so wives that he had. He would discard them after a night with them as they would come down with some skin disease. It’s unclear why but only Wan Sendari, the daughter of Lebar Daun manages to stay with him without being affected and ends up loving him as a wife. Part 3 is about Mambang, a warrior who slays Saktimuni the naga who had been killing men and livestock. Also about Sang Nila Utama’s daughters and his mistress and how he spotted what he assumed was a lion (singa) upon landing in Temasek. The book makes it clear that he was a flawed and weak man not the hero folklore might paint him to be. In that sense this book is like the feminist retelling of Greek mythology. An accessible and readable book about pre colonial history with a large dose of myth and legend.

[Alan Tao · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting concept, but far too broad. There are three separate stories being told here spanning across 300 years and multiple kingdoms. Unfortunately, there is not enough differentiation between the characters and even the kingdoms - one simply flows into another without much change.

The characters as well, are unfortunately far too similar - there are so many princesses and random royalty that they too blur into each other. Weirdly enough, Sang Nila Utama is more of a presence than a real character here. It is also very strange that Singapore (or Temasek as it is called here) in the end seems rather incidental, with the story ending just as Utama discovers and settles the island. For a book supposedly about precolonial Singapore, Singapore itself is very unimportant.

Nonetheless, it is still an interesting story being told from a relatively unexplored region.

[Hay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sure he takes some Nusantara myths from the Malay Annals, and retells some of them in this book, some of them faithfully, sometimes rearranging some of the details, but... to what end?...

And for a historian, there are also some glaring and annoying mistakes... in the book the characters repeatedly refer to the island as Temasek, but actually this name would not have been use yet as the name actually refers to the early settlement that would be later built there

[S S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book. Enchanting, mythic story about precolonial Singapore (and beyond!) "About" Sang Nila Utama, but not really. The story foregrounds the women and other people around him, and in doing so, paints a picture of precolonial Singapore that is diverse and colorful, a place of magic and legend, in sharp contrast to many depictions of the modern day.

[Tan Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

While the format of this epic reimaging of Nusantara mythology is somewhat intermittent and disjointed, it still retains much epic grandeur of the universe building, and even creatively injects some modern feminist themes, through the perspective of key female characters. 3 ½ stars rating rounded up.

[surreal moments · Rating 4 out of 5]

went into this without much context and felt quite immersed in the story. definitely agree that more detail can be given to each character (and indeed there are too many perspectives given). nonetheless, the four star rating is for the creativity of the storyline and considering the story’s focus is on sang nila utama, i get the lack of depth in the storytellers’ stories.

[Hannah · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was lowkey a hot mess. it was trying to do too much at once. the parallel storytelling from multiple perspectives was appreciated but not well executed. and to make matters worse, ng writes like he’s trying to show off the new vocabulary he just learned.

[Z Zegers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I loved the mysticism and the layered stories.

[Chai Li Chai Li · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 ⭐️