Quick Synopsis –In the sunny city of Singapore, the government takes care of everything—even the weird stuff.

Benjamin Toh is a middle manager in the Division for Engagement of Unusual Stakeholders (DEUS), and his job is straightforward: keep the supernatural inhabitants of Singapore happy and keep them out of sight. That is, don’t bother the good, normal citizens, and certainly don’t bother the bosses. Sure, he’s overworked and understaffed, but usually, people (and senior management) don’t see what they don’t want to see.

But when an entire housing estate glitches out of existence on what was meant to be a routine check-in, Ben has to scramble to keep things under control and stop the rest of the city from disappearing. He may not have the budget or the bandwidth, but he has the best—if highly irregular and supernaturally inclined—team to help him. Together, they’ll traverse secret shadow markets, scale skyscrapers, and maybe even go to the stars, all so they can just do their goddamn job.

Song This Reminds Me Of – Takedown from KPop Demon Hunters

Publication Date – Jan. 13 2026

Bookshop Link – City of Others by Jared Poon (I received a small commission if you order using my link)

Content Notes – There is off page death of a parent and death of a spouse. This book deals a lot with themes of grief, lasting effects of colonialism, xenophobia, genocide, war, violence, and feeling like an other. There is also some homophobia and bullying.

Rating – ⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5

Review – If you like X-Files or Lost Girl, you’d probably love this. I devoured this book. I love a book the blends traditional knowledge, history, and fantasy elements. This book does all three and nails what it’s like to work for a government entity? A book after my own heart. The only reason this wasn’t a five-star read for me is I had timing issues. I could tell this book took place in somewhat present day, but couldn’t really pinpoint when. Also, it’s clear that the plot of the book takes place over a few weeks, but again I had difficulty finding the pace and keeping with it. I almost wish there were dates at the start of each chapter.

I don’t know much about Singapore, but after reading this I felt like I understood more of the complex history with colonization and their mythology. Every time the author used words in another language or described a supernatural entity, I wasn’t familiar with, I was instantly searching for the answer. That’s a sign of a good book to me, because I’m invested enough in the world to want to know more. The characterization of Ben as not only a leader of his team, but also a Gardner (read the book if you want to know more 😜) was so well done. I loved following his character and I could see how he navigated doing the best he could for people/beings that truly needed his help. He was just such a soft cinnamon roll.

I also loved his romantic partner, Adam. Adam seemed a little like a dopey golden retriever, and I just really enjoyed that. Ben was a little more closed off to the world and Adam just really brought him out of himself. Honestly, the whole cast of characters was robust and well fleshed out. I cannot wait for the next book in this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for the advanced copy. All opinions are my own.