Ooh my heart. This is a beautiful story. I adore the world building. The author does such a skillful job on the pacing and flow of information. The characters are absolutely amazing. My heart goes out to Maci and Riftain. So much miscommunication and withhheld past. The plot is a really interesting one. I loved getting the use of foreshadowing. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

I really enjoyed this book! I think its a good adaptation of the web comic. It follows it very well.

While it took a minute to get into the book, I'm glad I stuck around because itended up captivating my completely.

Honestly just didn't vibe with this one. I wanted to try another light novel and this one is definitely a beautiful package. Definitely do think there's an audience for this one and look forward to hand selling it to that audience.

First of all check trigger warnings. This book was so good! I know a lot of people didn’t like this because of the beginning. Once you get past that and you read why it happens I think it’s worth it. I thought this was so captivating. I hated when I got to the end of the book. I need more! I do thoroughly enjoyed this book I went to read the web comic.
Thank you to NetGalley for an arc.

This story had a ton of potential, and I wanted to love it—really. The setup is all there: arranged marriage, emotional healing, medieval vibes. But the pacing dragged in places, and some of the emotional beats felt repetitive after a while. I did connect with Maxi’s character arc, and I’m intrigued enough to see where it goes, but this first volume just didn’t totally sweep me away like I hoped.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an E-ARC version of this book in exchange for an honest review. Suji Kim’s ‘Under the Oak Tree’ had a captivating cover and an intriguing plot that initially drew me in. However, as I read further, I found myself a bit disappointed overall. If you’re a fan of steamy scenes, this book delivers, but the romantic relationship between Maxi and Riftan could have been more developed. Despite this, I’ll definitely read the next volume to see what happens next!

Absolutely loved the web toon so was ecstatic about the novel. Cannot wait for part 2 to come out soon to add to my collection.

3.75⭐️

I feel like the book ended so abruptly… like I definitely want to read book two, but I think I’m confused 😂

✨ Arranged Marriage
✨ Literal Knight in Shining Armor
✨ “My Wife”
✨ Magic + Monsters

“You are my wife. Why must I seek anyone’s permission to take you with me? Your father has no right to interfere.”

”No amount of scolding or lashings could correct her imperfections, and for this, she was blamed.”

”For the first time, he smiled at her.”

”This was all I could think about while stuck in that living hell.”

”Maxi had never known such an affectionate embrace. Not even her own mother had held her with such warmth.”

”Maxi was convinced that she was the inadequate half in their marriage.”

”For someone with such an intimidating presence, he had an extraordinarily innocent and boyish laugh.”

”Riftan truly seemed pleased with her as a wife.”

”No one had ever bothered to ask about her feelings, yet here he was eager to address the smallest slight to her.”

”Just a few days ago, she had been trembling in fear. Now, a sliver of hope flickered in her heart.”

”Do you know how beautiful you are right now?”

”You… are a dangerous creature.”

”The first moment I saw you, I knew you would ruin me.”

”His displeasure still made her anxious, but she knew he would not hurt her.”

”Whenever he smiled, her cheeks burned and her heart beat distractingly fast.”

”It felt as if Riftan Calypse had always been a part of her.”

”He was genuinely happy, and the realization made her heart swell with pride.”

”For the first time in her life, someone had seen potential in her.”

”He was always so gentle with her, and it continued to confound Maxi.”

”You dare speak to my wife with such impertinence?”

”You are the one person in this world I must worry about. I know you’re upset, but don’t tell me not to worry for you.”

I really wanted to like this. I was warned about the "romance" and I tried skipping through the book, but it just felt wretched. I don't mind sad things, trauma in books, but I genuinely felt like I was watching a puppy get kicked and it made me unable to finish. Confusing read, not a fan of the vibes, sorry this wasn't for me.

This really threw me at first, having read the original before this novelization. Some of the more graphic scenes were hard to read. I powered through, but if you are one who doesn’t love toxic arranged marriage style sexual scenes (think Dany and Drogo but with her being actually old enough), definitely steer clear.

I also really wish this was the entirety of the saga. Being only volume 1, not much actually happens plot-wise. We only get the exposition.

However, all that said, the novelization is true to the original, and I love the characters!

I recommend this if you are into a slow burn through discomfort. Arranged marriage. And there promises to be much more of monsters in future volumes, so it can work with those interests as well!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions are my own.

I love me a good fantasy with romance all twisted together. Sad backstories and dramatic medieval stuff going on...ah, such a good read. Love love love this series.

Actual rating is probably closer to 1.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Inklore for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Under the Oak Tree by Suji Kim is an award-winning romantasy web novel translated from Korean. Maxi, abused by her wealthy father since childhood because of her stutter, is married off to a famous knight, Riftan, whom she barely knows and is very intimidated by. After he brings her to his estate (three years after their marriage, delayed by battle), they slowly get to know each other. Their romance "blooms" as Maxi comes into her own.

Or so the plot is supposed to go. Frankly, this book is an object lesson to not judge a book by its cover. While the design of the physical book is five-star quality (metallic engraving, sprayed edges, ribbon bookmark--it is very pretty), the rest of the story feels more like a multi-volume fanfic of romance tropes in an extended PWP. Riftan is a toxically masculine horndog who needs to take a breather in horny jail--he's too busy forcing himself on his wife at every single opportunity to get to know her properly, but becomes upset when she tries to reciprocate his affections in a very hypocritical double standard. It feels like he should have just married a s*x doll, given the way he treats her--there is no chemistry between them, and while I'm not averse to spicy romance novels (or fanfiction in general), if all the explicit content was removed, this nearly 500 page book would be thirty to fifty percent shorter. Maxi has more (minimal) chemistry with Ruth, the local mage, if only because he treats her like an actual person (relatively speaking). This would have been a much better story if Riftan's character was cut and replaced with a different male lead, and more focus was given to Maxi healing from her trauma and gaining the confidence to discover and follow her dreams. Riftan should go marry Princess Agnes instead--she doesn't appear in Volume 1, but seems a better match for him--if only because the descriptions of her seem to indicate that she can take him down a peg.

I'm not sure why this series is so popular, but someone will have to really sell me on the rest of the series if they want me to keep reading. My hope is that somewhere down the line, the point will be explicitly made that forced s*x between a married couple is still non-con (or at best, dub con).

If you like the Grumpy/Sweet pairing, try these instead: Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan and Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao.

I don't think rapists should ever be the love interest, nor do I think that this book handled the topic with any sort of care.

This was a very interesting sounding novel and I had high hopes for it but I couldn't fully get into it due to the unexpected toxicity of the romance and some more triggering scenes in it. I'm aware that some people enjoy novels like that, so in that case I would recommend but if you are someone who does not enjoy that then keep it in mind.

This book made me a little uncomfortable at times and it was a little difficult to read in the way things were communicated across the page. I would definitely look into other reviews before deciding on picking this up.

I love love love the web comic of this and was so excited when they announced a light novel of it. This lived up to everything I wanted from it.

I anticipated liking this, as it has a huge fanbase. I liked the description and thought surely this would be at least a 3-star read, but it was not for me. The world-building was great, and I appreciated the stutter rep, After some browsing, I do think this works better as a webtoon/comic than a novel. I read the trigger warnings, but I do not like the way SA was depicted. The scenes were graphic, which is fine, but felt kind disturbing in this story in particular. The MC is very alpha-male abusive and the FMC acts helpless like a fragil. baby bird. I'm just not into that.

Well that was disappointing.
First off, thank you NetGalley for the eARC and I'm so sorry it't taken me this long to realize that this book is absolutely not for me.
At the very start of this book is a grape scene and I just can't. Yes I read the trigger warnings, but I wasn't prepared for what the book had in store. Sorry but I couldn't get through that scene and have zero interest in reading farther into this book.

Under the Oak Tree is an engaging romance set against a backdrop of medieval fantasy, featuring a compelling blend of slow-burn longing, political intrigue, and personal growth.

The world-building shines with its detailed settings and court dynamics, and the chemistry between the leads is both sweet and mature. At times, the pacing can feel a bit stretched, especially in scenes focused on daily life or Maxi’s inner struggles, but these moments also add depth to her character. The novel explores themes of trust, healing, and empowerment in a way that feels genuine and satisfying.

Under the Oak Tree is a satisfying start to the series; romantic, emotional, and immersive. It’s a great pick for fans of character-driven fantasy and slow-burn romances who enjoy seeing a heroine grow into her own.