After the Inquiry Ethos Books

“After the Inquiry lays bare the human cost of Singapore’s much-vaunted stability, and asks who must be thrown overboard in order for the boat not to be rocked. Using the format of a government inquiry into a violent incident, Jolene Tan carries out her own investigation into the machinations of state apparatus, and presents her findings without comment — the results speak for themselves. A masterpiece of meticulous construction, with a central character whose voice is all the more chilling for its banality.”
—Jeremy Tiang, author of State of Emergency (winner of Singapore Literature Prize 2018)

“After the Inquiry is a riveting novel that casually exposes the pitfalls of our iron-clad officialdom. Through her incisive, witty prose, Jolene Tan presents a protagonist who is so comfortably entrenched in our systems that he doesn’t know where they end and where he begins. Part mystery, part character study, this novel reminds us of the shadow narratives that run parallel to the ones we are told about Singapore society’s fine-tuned machinery.”
—Balli Kaur Jaswal, Author of Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows

“Chilling in his reptilian intelligence, Jolene Tan’s protagonist brings to mind Ishiguro’s butler and Adiga’s “white tiger”. After the Inquiry is an incisive portrayal of hierarchy, (a)morality, and authoritarianism.”
—Jing-Jing Lee, Author of How We Disappeared

“A gripping novel, both a thriller and an examination into the dark soul of Singaporean bureaucracy. Written in the form of a series of reports, it demonstrates how cool, surgical language can rationalise even the most violent prejudices. A chilling and unforgettable portrait of a functionary who has found all the ways to checkmate his own conscience.”
—Alfian Sa’at, Resident Playwright of Wild Rice and Author of Corridor and Malay Sketches

Jolene Tan is a writer from Singapore, whose fiction includes the novel A Certain Exposure, short fiction published in The Manchester Review, and a children’s picture book, Saturday’s Surprisingly Super-Duper Lesson. She has also written numerous non-fiction articles, principally on equality and human rights, for publications such as New Naratif, The Online Citizen, The F Word, The Birthday Book, CNA and The Straits Times.