Thanks to Netgalley, I received this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion. Not only did the summary sound really interesting, but this book was GREAT! It kept me on my toes wanting to find out what happened to the main characters husband. I would definitely recommend this book!

Excavations gave me a glimpse into a culture and world I knew very little about. Sae lives in Seoul, South Korea with her husband and two young sons. When he husband doesn't return home from work one day, her life is turned upside down.

Sae's husband is an engineer in a high rise that collapsed, killing hundreds. Her search for her husband and the truth behind the construction of the building are very interesting. There were references to other events in South Korean history that I had to research on my own. It was a little tough at times to follow some of what was happening because of the names and events that are unfamiliar to me.

But the story and writing are very well done. I have a nephew living in South Korea so I enjoyed learning more about the history of the country. The events in this story, the collapse of Aspiration Tower, are loosely based on a real-life collapse of the Sampoong Department Store collapse in 1995.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC

Finding truth can be nearly impossible when big corporations and the government may be covering up facts. But it didn’t stop Sae from a willful search.

She was working at a journalist after college and then paused to raise her two young boys. However, now she felt forced to return to her investigative days when her husband, Jae, didn’t come home after a tower in Seoul, Korea collapsed. That’s where he was working when the explosion occurred. Immediately, Sae went to the Tower to find Jae, leaving her boys with the neighbor.

The story gets in your head trying to take in all the clues. It’s not easy as there are lots of Korean names which took me out of my comfort zone. Also, the plot goes back and forth in time which at first wasn’t easy to follow.

While it’s not a true story, it felt like it could be. As a result, I learned about what corruption in the big city of Seoul could be like with the dangers of the brave people that were demonstrating against the fascist government.

Some parts bothered me. It didn’t sit well when Sae was busy investigating what happened to Jae rather than watching out for her two kids, Seung-min and Hoon-min. They also wanted truth and were confused about their “appa” even at a young age.

I felt like the characters were genuine with the storyline that had me wondering all along about Jae. Everything came together at the end with an unexpected surprise.

My thanks to One World and NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy with an expected released date of July 11, 2023.

Excavations by Hannah Michell was a late night up past my bedtime as I swiped pages quickly to find out what Arliss Cutter would be dealing with in
Hannah Michell builds the tension slowly in this novel. Hardly before the reader is aware, it turns into a nail-biter. Cover-ups, corruption, power and finding the truth.
It is delicious. Brilliantly written and plotted, this book is a winner.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Random House & One World for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Sae is a former journalist and a happily married stay at home mother to two children. One evening, her beloved husband Jae fails to come home from work. The building his engineering firm was working in has collapsed, resulting in the death and injury of hundreds. As Sae attempts to find her husband (or at least bring home his remains), she uncovers more and more clues that don’t add up. Jae claimed he was working on a swimming pool, so why were his coworkers found in the basement? Meanwhile, in another part of Seoul, a madam at an exclusive club entertains various powerful men while secretly recording all of their secrets. Over the course of this novel, the two plot lines will converge in explosive ways.

Excavations begins as a thriller with a family mystery at its heart. As the novel progresses, it becomes a meditation on questions of justice, family, and history, asking us how well we can ever truly know someone. I loved this book and found it a fast, gripping read. I thought about it long after I finished, and I also learned quite a bit about contemporary South Korean history and politics. I highly recommend this book. It was one of my top reads this year so far, and I will eagerly await Michell’s next book.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.

A building collapsed and Sae's husband is missing. As she reflects on the past and tries to figure out what happened she realizes things aren't what they seem.

I liked the story overall but thought it was a bit on the slow side. Struggled to connect to the characters but appreciated learning more about the Sampoong Department Store collapse in Seoul, DIdn't love how the story jumped around.

This story took a bit to get into as the writing was kind of dry. Other than that the story itself was an interesting mix of past and present.

The cover intrigued me. I struggled to keep up with this one sadly and had to put it down a few times. Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I devoured this since I'm basically not sleeping due to my stress induced insomnia.

When I review for Netgalley, I do so quickly based on final gut feeling towards a book, but 4 stars are the most likely to get bumped up to a 4.5 or 5 star rating by the time I discuss them on TikTok or Goodreads. I was really into this story. I don't know if it was the premise or structure of the book in regard to how I received information that stuck out. The characters felt so realistic because this could be anyone on any given day experiencing abrupt tragedy that has a longevity to its remembrance/memorialization and public criticisms and creates a lot of emotional conflict for real people. That's devastating whether it's fictional or not, or partly fictionalized such as this, and that adds to its impact on me as a reader.

I take notes while reading on my Kindle so I'll have to flip through and think about some of the writing for a bit; loads of people are saying the writing is stilted and I don't know if that's how I'd describe it. A concise, fully rounded review will be posted on my sites closer to the pub date. I will happily update here as well.

Excavations by Hannah Michell was a compelling book that takes place in Seoul, South Korea, Sae is a stay at home mom and former journalist that has to look for her missing husband and keep her young children safe. Jae is usually not late from work and he does not come home from work at the expected time. The book goes on with Sae digging deeper into a collapse of a building that Jae is working on,. The book looks at the sex trade, government and big business corruption/cover-ups, and former political stands.

There are many storylines in this book but they do come together in the end. The book did keep my interest and I would recommend reading Excavations. I did not realize that the building collapse in Seoul is based on a true event. I do want to do a bit of research on this.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of Excavations by Hannah Michell. #NetGalley, #HannahMichell #Excavations

In the mid 90s, a building collapsed in South Korea, killing hundreds. The author builds a fictional story around this event that begins with the collapse and a husband who doesn't come home from work. Each chapter then moves forward hours, then days, then weeks, then years, then ultimately ends 24 years later. Are all truths so hard to excavate? This is the theme the author plays with as each conversation, each question, brings more of what has been buried to light.

I really liked this one, especially the first half. The intrigue and mystery worked really well with the political aspects. What I most enjoyed were the characters, and how all of their lives were connected (even if some of the connections were a bit predictable). I wish the ending would have been stronger to match the rest of the book, but overall, I would recommend this one.

Amid a sea of corruption and deceit, a young mother searches for the truth of her husband’s death in the destruction of a skyscraper. Sae was married to Jae but he never spoke of his childhood and youth stating he was an orphan. Using her journalistic training, Sae digs into the building’s collapse and her husband’s connection to it. It is an engrossing story of corruption, power, and ruthlessness.
I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This starts off beautifully and the premise is so enticing. I adore the mystery and political intrigue. The characters are layered and flawed in gorgeous ways. Learning about the roots of their relationships was truly the best part of this book. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me about halfway through. I wasn’t entirely invested in the second storyline and the reveal at the end felt like such a predictable loss for the protagonist. There’s several loose ends and some lines that felt unnecessary, but what’s done well is done incredibly. Beautiful book! Just not for me.

I am so glad that I was sent this book by the publisher! I am not sure this is a book that I would have chosen for myself, but it was a fantastic read. I cannot imagine what it would be like to live in a country with such a controlling government and I hope that one day we never have to find out. There is also an amazing twist in this book! Good read!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Sae is concerned when her husband is not home from work. She learned that her husband was not very forthcoming about his job. She decides to go on a mission to figure out the truth. I liked getting to know Sae's life.

1995, Seoul: Sae is a former journalist turned stay-at-home housewife taking care of her two toddler sons Heung-min and Soon-min waiting for her husband Jae to arrive home for dinner. It's a day no different than any other, but Jae's uncharacteristic lateness becomes increasingly worrisome - until Sae's neighbor comes by and she learns of the sudden collapse of Aspiration Tower, a skyscraper that her husband, an architect, was working on. Panicked, Sae tries to find her husband while hoping for the best, for her search for what happened leads her down a completely different path as she realizes how little about him she actually knew.

The novel shifts timelines, as Sae recalls how she first met her husband, and storylines as other seemingly disparate characters are introduced including Myonghee, the owner of a brothel in the city, as well as an interview done of the founder of Taehan Group, the company who commissioned the work behind Aspiration Tower. The novel unfolds like a mystery as all of these storylines come together and the truth behind the tower's collapse is revealed.

As a whole, I enjoyed this novel especially as Michell has based much of the story on the true events of the Sampoong Department Store collapse in Seoul, and also incorporates the events of the Sewol Ferry Disaster that happened in 2014 as well. It's a jarring look at the historical and ongoing corruption by large corporations and the government, and the role journalists play and revealing the truth, even at the risk of their own lives. I did struggle with the novel, however, given the uneven pacing and the frequent plot jumps across time periods and characters; especially at the beginning of the novel, it's difficult to keep track of. The writing tone and voice took some time to get used to as well, as it's unexpectedly rigid and unemotional, and makes the characters feel inaccessible for a majority of the novel.

Worth a read given the unique focus and style of the novel, but I think some readers will struggle to keep up.

Sae sits home with her two small boys. There has been an horrific explosion in the high-rise building where her husband, Jae, has been working. In the days that follow he does not return. Rumors spread that there were structural problems with the building. Legal repercussions will follow with arrests and lawsuits. Will Jae be involved? As she searches for him and for answers, the storyline takes the reader back to early days when they met at university. As Hannah Michell introduces more characters we see how complexly their lives intertwine. Set against Seoul’s preparations for hosting the coming Olympics, we witness the deep-rooted corruption and cover-ups taking place. Using her skills as a former news reporter, Sae performs her own excavations into the life of the husband she thought she knew and, in turn, finds the answer to many mysteries.

Sae is patiently waiting at home for her husband. He promised to come home early tonight so that they could talk and spend time together. She waits and waits. A neighbor calls her alerting her to the news report that the building her husband is working in has collapsed. Where is he? Is he buried in the rubble waiting for rescue or is her dead, crushed by the rubble? How will Sae explain to her two young sons where their father is? This opening scene provides a multitude of questions and the book takes us on a journey to find answers. Sae realizes that in order for her to get answers, she must investigate. She uncovers corruption, nepotism, and hidden identity. Ultimately Sae will need to find her way forward and raise her sons. Can her knowledge of the origin of the building collapse help her?

Hannah Michell's book "Excavations" introduces a dysfunctional family surrounded by greed and brotherly competition. The dysfunction spills over and causes harm to many more people. Will the wealthy be able to walk away with a slap on the wrist or face a more realistic and substantial punishment? Sae and her sons are caught in this tempest and must try to move forward. Will she be able to locate her husband? There a many characters in this story and it takes time to understand a see each one's contribution to this tragic tale. In the end, does the tower collapse help or hurt this small family?

“Excavations” is by Hannah Michell. This book tells the story of a woman, Sae, waiting for her husband, Jae, to return home from work. Unfortunately, the skyscraper where Sae believes Jae to have been has collapsed. The book is told as time passes from the collapse. Rumors fly about the collapse and who is responsible.

This book is very plot driven and at times read very stilted. However, I know this was the style the author chose, but it’s not always a writing style I enjoy reading. After reading a number of chapters, I still didn’t really feel like Sae had much depth - other than wanting to find her husband and using her reporting skills to figure out what had happened. There are also a number of flashbacks that I wish had been noted (such as with a date or a line or a different font) for easier reading. I found the overarching story interesting for the first bit, but then it became a bit too soap opera-like for my taste. On the plus side, I did like reading/learning more about a culture I know very little about and the ending was tied together well. Overall a 3.5 read, rounded up to 4 stars.