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.

Excavations by Hannah Michell is a thrilling exploration of one woman's search for the truth in the midst of a disaster. Sae, a former journalist turned stay-at-home mother, is confronted with the collapse of a massive skyscraper where her husband, Jae, works as an engineer. As time passes and Jae remains missing, Sae becomes suspicious of the government's involvement and sets out to uncover what really happened to her husband.

The novel takes readers on a suspenseful journey as Sae delves into the dark underbelly of Seoul and discovers a world of corruption and secrets. Michell's writing is gripping, with vivid descriptions that bring the setting and characters to life. Sae is a compelling protagonist, driven by her love for her husband and her desire to protect her children.

Through Sae's investigation, the novel explores themes of power, truth, and the lengths people will go to in order to uncover hard truths. The supporting characters are also well-developed and add depth to the story, particularly Myonghee, the proprietor of an upscale club who has her own secrets to protect.

Overall, Excavations is a page-turner that will keep readers on the edge of their seats until the very end. Michell's masterful storytelling and complex characters make for a truly unforgettable read.

While parts of this book were harder to read due to awkward pacing and phrasing, I really enjoyed reading this story about a woman whose husband doesn't come home from an explosion in the building where he works. So she tries to figure out what happened and starts unraveling a giant web of secrets. Very interesting story and based on a real-life unfortunate event. It's a quiet and yet gripping book.

with gratitude to netgalley and Random House for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Excavations is a tight, well-crafted book that is a mystery, a chronicle of suffering and family tensions, and a scathing critique of corporate power. Sae, an activist-journalist, untangles her own past and relationship as she searches for her husband after a building he was working on collapses, finding layer upon layer of deceit and manipulation and abuse of power. Along the way, she finds various allies--a former college friend, also an activist; a former co-worker, whose newspaper is bought and shut down by the corporation it criticizes; the manager of a social club and brothel, herself full of secrets and controlling threads of power--who help her put together all of the pieces of the building collapse and those responsible for it--and also responsible for how Sae has shaped her life. A fast, compelling read, in which author Hannah Michell gives the reader just enough information to keep them wanting for more. I can't wait to read more by her.

When a building in South Korea collapses, a young mother searches for her husband where she learns of her husband's secrets and uncovers conspiracies and corruption at the highest levels of government.

Thank you to Random House for reaching out and sending me this arc to review

I typically do not enjoy books about companies trying to do cover ups and someone has to investigate that, I just can never relate to any of the characters but I still wanted to give this a chance and sadly it just was not for me.

I think the first half of the book was much stronger than the second half. The story started to drag and veer off course. Also, this is a political novel which can become cumbersome if you're not a fan of politics in general. I enjoyed reading the love story of Sae and Jae, but I didn't like when other characters were introduced. The secondary characters were boring to read from and lacked conviction. I wish I would have connected with this novel more, but overall, it's a decent and solid read. A bit heavy-handed at times, but the relationship between the married couple was enough to satisfy my attention.

Thank you, Netgalley and Random House for the digital ARC.

Excavations is the type of book that will keep you thinking long after you read it. Sae is a stay at home mom in Seoul, South Korea with two toddlers. She is waiting for her husband to come home when she hears the news that the building he worked at had collapsed. Refusing to believe that he could possibly be dead, Sae searches for answers as to what happened. While trying to uncover what happens she meets Myonghee, who runs an upscale brothel. The two of them will uncover that there is so much more to this story and their personal lives as well.

There was mystery and intrigue as well as different ties and connections between characters that I did not see coming. The setting of South Korea brought a whole new world to life for me as I got a sense of the culture and background of the characters. This book was very well written and will keep you guessing as to what is going to happen next. An interesting read that will keep you guessing until the end.

Thank you to One World Books and Penguin Random House for this advanced copy.

I was first drawn to this book as it takes place in Korea. This book was a slow burn, about political and business corruption.

Sae is waiting for her husband to come home from work. He has never been late and now she sees on television that the building where he works has collapsed. She is a journalist and she wants to find out what happened to her husband and why the building collapsed.

I found the writing style and pace to be slow and it was hard to keep me motivated to finish the story. I'm glad that I did but overall not a book that I loved but glad that I tried something out of my comfort zone.

This is a good book. I can not tell you a lot about the storyline, because I did not understand all of it, but it is a good book. I am a southern American woman and the Korean names, places were difficult for me to grasp. I know that Sae is the female heroine. She was married and had two sons. After reading this book, I am even more proud to live in the U.S.A. and to have the freedoms we have. It is a good book, what I understood of it. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy for my honest review.

A phenomenal book based on a real life situation in South Korea.

When Sae's husband doesn't return one evening, she is forced to confront the issue that he may have died in the collapse of a skyscraper where he was recently assigned to work. Days pass as Sae cares for her two young children but she does not give up hope. As she reflects on their relationship and the political leanings that brought them together, we realize that there is more at stake then faulty building structures.

If you like a slow burn, political and business corruption and conspiracies or just are interested in a South Korean tale, Excavations is for you!

·(This story is loosely based off the devastating 1995 Sampoong department store collapse in Seoul, South Korea. It is definitely worth googling that disaster before or after the story.)
#excavations #hannahmichell #randomhouse

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House, One World for the copy of Excavations by Hannah Michell. This is a story about the collapse of a skyscraper and Sae’s quest to find her husband who worked in the skyscraper and doesn’t come home. This is not my usual kind of book, but it sounded intriguing so I thought I would take a chance. Sae is a tenacious wife and mother and a really interesting character. I did feel like the book bogged down a little in the middle because there was so much going on and so many stories. I was glad I kept reading because the stories all came together in a satisfying way in the end. If you want a family story that spans generations, this is the book for you. The writing, the story, and the characters are all top notch!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. I was drawn to the cover, and then the description drew me in.... but that's about all. This book is very plot-driven - it moves very quickly, and there are a lot of moving pieces that come together (rather predictably) in the end. I found the writing to be very awkward and stilted, and the writing style combined with the quick pace of the plot left little room for characterization. All the characters here seemed to fall flat - I didn't really connect with any of them. The "big reveals" in this story were too soap-opera for me.... This book just wasn't my thing.