✪ ANNIHILATION meets THE LAST OF US

“Choi Jungwon’s HUMMING, built on the shocking premise that the citizens of Seoul turn into trees, is an eco-thriller... built on genre elements from action and mystery.” -- Donga Daily review

“From the very first page, I was immersed-- not simply because of the unusual premise and the eerily beautiful dystopia but also the cinematic storytelling that takes you on a ride.” -- Top reader review on Yes24

Nine years ago, Yuhwoon fled Seoul with her aunt as a mysterious virus swept through the city, transforming those affected into trees. In the chaos, they had no time to save Yuhwoon's mother, and leaving her behind has haunted Yuhwoon ever since.

Now a virologist, Yuhwoon finally has the chance to return home. The Korean government is launching an ambitious anti-virus system, Umbrella, to wipe out the virus once and for all. However, when the Umbrella task force suddenly loses contact with the government, Yuhwoon volunteers to enter the wall-sealed quarantined city to figure out what happened to the team, and most of all, to learn whether her mother has truly become one of the human-trees that stalks her nightmares.

Armed with only a tablet, a collection box, and accompanied by a government-issued AI humanoid called R, Yuhwoon ventures into Seoul. What awaits her is beyond imagination: a city overtaken by ghostly forests of human-trees, their leaves whispering and humming like swarms of bees, and a boy who has somehow resisted the virus. As Yuhwoon digs deeper, she realizes the truth behind the Umbrella project may be far more sinister than the virus itself.

Beautifully crafted and profoundly mesmerizing, HUMMING is a post-apocalyptic eco-thriller that pushes readers to confront what it truly means to be human-- and what lines we cross in the name of survival.