4.5/5

The drama is palpable in this tale of loss and hope. Sae, the MC, brings a lot to the pages here - you feel how she feels and think how she thinks - even though you may not fully understand it all. That’s a testament to the power of Hannah Michell’s storytelling and writing. It is rife with South Korean politics and history, and after finishing this book, you’ll want more. I guarantee it.

Sae is waiting for her husband to get home from work when she gets news that the building he was working on has collapsed. However, as the days pass, things don’t add up. Sae, a former journalist, sets up to uncover the truth about what happened to her husband.

I thought there was going to be more suspense here than there was. Part of that was writing style, which others might enjoy more than me here.

OKAY! I am so thankful to Hannah Michell, Random House Publishing Group, Netgalley, and PRH Audio for granting advanced digital and audiobook access to this jarring novel about political and economic tensions gone awry following the tragic loss of several hundred/thousand citizens. Excavations is set to hit shelves on July 11, 2023, and I can't wait to create some more hype for this gem.

Sae, a seasoned journalist in Seoul, Korea, grows worrisome after her husband doesn't return home from work. After heading into the city and referring to the local news, she finds that the building her husband was working in has collapsed, leaving thousands dead, displaced, and missing. Putting her journalistic cap back on, Sae finds there is more to this seemingly random disaster, and it was likely orchestrated as a form of an organization covering up its misdoings.

In a post-Japan-occupied South Korea, societal tensions are still high as the younger generations fight for equal treatment and freedoms that are still hesitant to be equally dispersed. There were points throughout this book that felt synonymous with the working conditions in factories here in the states, so I appreciated the stark comparisons to the evils of play/work.

Loosely based on real events, "Excavations" by Hannah Michell is the story of a journalist turned stay at home mom to two whose life is torn apart when an office tower collapses. While trying to determine whether or not her missing husband perished in the tragedy, Sae is forced to confront the fact that her husband may not be the man she thought he was.

This book is a slow burn set against the backdrop of South Korean history. It is well written and kept me guessing right up until the end. The story is told through shifting timelines and multiple characters, but it all comes together in a satisfying conclusion. This novel is more than a run of the mill mystery; it is a book about power and corruption, hope and strength. It's a book that will stay with me for quite some time.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the privilege of reading an advanced copy of this fabulous book in exchange for my honest review.

I knew I was going to like Excavations almost as soon as I started reading the book. Hannah Michell immediately drew me into the story, especially as it starts with the heart racing disaster of a building collapse.

When Aspiration Tower collapses, Sae's husband Jae goes missing. Jae was working in the tower on the construction of a swimming pool. As a former reporter, Sae is used to uncovering the truth and the search to find the truth about what happened to Jae will threaten everything she knows.

Readers who enjoy mysteries surrounding corporate and government secrets, lies, and cover ups will enjoy this book. The story is addictive and has a lot of twists and turns along the way. I would absolutely recommend this book!

An absolutely incredible novel, tender and haunting, rooted in real historical events -- I loved the way this unfolded, and how multiple storylines were introduced and then slowly converged. Truly beautiful, I look forward to reading so much more from Hannah Michell in the future.

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.