Mystery of the Missing Emperor’s Gift: A Graphic Novel on Thian Hock Keng Temple
Price range: $22.94 through $36.70
English:
ISBN 978-981-94-6653-5 (Paperback)
ISBN 978-981-94-6652-8 (Hardback)
Chinese:
ISBN 978-981-94-6655-9 (Paperback)
Page Count: 128pp
Year Published: 2026
Author: The Nutgraf
Illustrator: Cheah Sinann
Publisher: The Nutgraf Books
Dimensions: 168 mm (L) x 260mm (W)
Format: Paperback, Hardcover
In this fictional tale set in early 20th-century Singapore, peace is disrupted when a special artefact goes missing.
During the Chinese New Year celebration in 1908, a plaque given to the Thian Hock Keng Temple by Emperor Guangxu (Gentle Waves over the South Seas — 波靖南溟 Bo Jing Nan Ming) was meant to be unveiled. But when the curtain falls, there is a collective gasp: the plaque is not there.
Fearing punishment from the imperial court, the temple elders assign Eng to find the plaque within 48 hours. As record keeper and person most familiar with the everyday happenings of the temple, she sets about interviewing possible witnesses and suspects.
But investigating her fellow staff members proves harder than expected, and an uncomfortable question looms: In a temple built on trust and virtue, could theft really be possible?
1908年, 天福宫原定于农历新年庆祝活动期间, 为光绪皇帝御笔亲题的 “波靖南溟” 匾额揭幕。 怎知帷幕掀起时, 全场倒吸一口气⸺ 匾额竟不翼而飞。
因恐朝廷降罪, 庙里长者指派阿英在48小时内将匾额寻回。 身为天福宫 的财副, 阿英对庙内日常运作了如指掌, 她旋即展开调查, 找出目击者和嫌疑人进行问询。
然而, 调查同事这项工作远比想象中困难, 过程中阿英也不断思索: 以诚信为基石的庙宇内, 当真有人犯了偷窃之错?
Mystery of the Missing Emperor’s Gift: A Graphic Novel on Thian Hock Keng Temple 《天福宫迷案：御赐之礼失踪记》 is written by The Nutgraf and illustrated by veteran artist Cheah Sinann. It is available in both English and Chinese editions.
About the writers
The Nutgraf is an award-winning strategic content and communications agency that positions brands as thought leaders by sparking conversations, sharing insights, and shaping perceptions. For a decade, we have helped businesses and individuals achieve their goals by creating strong narratives and campaigns that not only reach, but also resonate with their audiences. Our writers have written bestselling books such as The Last Fools: The Eight Immortals of Lee Kuan Yew; Lee Ek Tieng: The Green General of Lee Kuan Yew; Tall Order and Standing Tall, a pair of biographies on former Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong; and When the Party Ends: China’s Leaps and Stumbles after the Beijing Olympics, which won the Singapore Literature Prize in 2016.
About the Illustrator
Cheah Sinann is a former editorial cartoonist with The Straits Times, where he drew a daily cartoon strip called The House of Lim for close to 10 years, from the 1980s to the 1990s. Today, his daily strip titled Budi and Saltie appears in Brunei’s main daily, The Borneo Bulletin. The cartoon is about local wildlife and the environment, and was also published in The New Straits Times in Malaysia during the 2000s. As an illustrator, Cheah has worked with renowned authors like Michael Chiang and Felix Cheong. In recent years, he has delved into graphic novels, publishing The Bicycle, a book on the Japanese Occupation in Singapore, in 2014. It was followed by Terumbu and Goh Keng Swee: A Singaporean for All Seasons, which were published in 2018 and 2023 respectively.
