Reading Rachel

I’m happy to share that my upcoming novel, FINDING CHOPIN, will launch this October. The book was a finalist of the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2025.

The narrative explores how a mother and son navigate their shared and respective memories in search of elusive answers—only to unearth a tangled history of loss, love and unexpected revelations. 

FINDING CHOPIN has won the praise of fellow writers:

“A tender, poignant story of loss and grief, beautifully imagined and told with empathy and grace. Tey’s keen eye for detail and sensitive ear for speech breathe verve into the prose and life into the characters, drawing us irresistibly into the mother and son’s journey of self-discovery and healing.” —Boey Kim Cheng

“Tender and sharply observant, Finding Chopin is a tale that boldly peels back layers of memory and identity to reveal the quiet rage and pain that sometimes underlie difficult love. Achingly real.” —Sebastian Sim

More information can be found in Epigram’s catalogue (page 14).

FINDING CHOPIN will be showcased at the Singapore Writers Festival 2025, where I will speak on a 15 November panel alongside EBFP 2025 winner Meihan Boey and co-finalists Ng Yi-Sheng and Sunita Sue Leng. I will also be at the 28 November edition of Epigram’s monthly “The Plot Thickens” event series—discussing my book. All are invited.

In the meantime, l would love to connect with English Literature educators who may be interested to stock the book for their school libraries or include the novel as a SingLit text in their curricula.

Please get in touch with me via email: contact[at]racheltey.com

On 13 February, I attended the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2025 gala dinner where I received an award for being a finalist.

The amazing Meihan Boey clinched the grand prize for her third book in her Miss Cassidy trilogy, The Mystical Mister Kay — making her a two-time winner of the EBFP! I also finally got to meet the other finalists, Ng Yi-Sheng, whose upcoming Utama blends history and fantasy in an imaginative take on Sang Nila Utama; as well as Sunita Sue Leng who tackles themes of motherhood, age, and family in humorous ways through The Unlikely Motherhood of Shaleni May.

Finally, there’s my book, “Finding Chopin”, slated for release late this year. I’m working hard with my editor to put the necessary finishing touches, and am excited for the public to read my first work of adult literary fiction

Thank you to my publisher Epigram Books, and my little community here! Stay tuned for more updates.

Am thrilled to share that my forthcoming novel has been shortlisted for the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2025 ✨

Glad to have found a home for my little story about how a Singaporean family navigates the complexities of life, loss, and kinship—which expanded from my MA research around memory as mental time travel. It’s been quite a journey writing and finishing this novel, and I feel super blessed and fortunate to be shortlisted alongside such fine and accomplished writers.

Please support the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2025 so that more stories from our corner of the world can be told: thefoundation.sg/ebfp