Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had to DNF this ARC 6% of the way in because of material related to rape and sexual assault. In the very first chapter, the main character, Maxi, is raped by her newly-wed husband Riftan, yet this book sets up their relationship as a romance. I recommend more specific trigger warnings at the beginning of the novel, as the author's note only mentions that this novel "contains explicit sexual content that may not be suitable for all audiences."

Note: I have not read the manwha,

Unfortunately I was not a huge fan of this book and the only reason was the beginning which I was not expecting to have such strong themes of SA. It really put me off the whole book specially because it didnt seem marketed in that way. I really wanted to love it, but I couldn’t get past that and it made it hard to be able to continue the story.

I think for some people this book will be amazing, it was just not it for me because I was triggered and was not able to prepare as there was no warning of this prior. If there were a warning, I couldve came into this experience with a much different outlook

I was excited about reading this book—the plot seemed so promising! But, while I enjoyed parts of it, it didn’t quite live up to my expectations.

I was drawn in by the storyline, especially seeing Maxi, sheltered and unsure, start to find her voice in a restrictive medieval world. Her journey was inspiring, and I rooted for her as she began standing up for herself. Riftan’s character intrigued me too, though I wish there had been more depth to both of them. They each have defined personalities, but something feels missing, like we’re only scratching the surface.

The worldbuilding gives off those familiar fantasy medieval vibes, which I always enjoy. It’s not the most unique, but it sets the tone well. And honestly, I think this story works better as a webtoon, with a great artwork it could bring more emotion and layers to the characters and setting.

It’s an easy, quick read with a story that kept me interested enough to pick up the next volume. Despite some simplicity in the writing and character development, I’m curious to see how Maxi’s journey continues and if her relationship with Riftan deepens over time. Fans of straightforward, character-driven fantasy romance may enjoy this as a light read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I read this back in 2021 as a manwha after being influenced by a random Instagram ad, and I was so enamored by the story that I found the web novel online somehow, read what was uploaded (I think it was Ch. 250 something) in a week, then proceeded to forget the plot after being steamrolled by my MA thesis research. 🤪

So when I found out that this got picked up for traditional publishing, I RAN to request it. Not only did this bring back memories of my minuscule studio apartment in Warsaw, but honestly, I think this was the start of my toe dip into romantic fantasy. 💖

The story follows Maximillian Calypse, the horrifically abused daughter of a wealthy duke who forced her to marry lowborn knight, Riftan, in order to avoid his duties. Now that Riftan has returned victorious from a brutal three-year campaign, he’s come back to escort his estranged wife to his estate. I will be honest and say that I don’t know what drew me to these characters in the first place. Maybe I loved the dynamic of two awkward people falling in love with each other; maybe it was the classic damsel in distress that’s rescued by a dashing knight; maybe I needed some romance in my life because my boyfriend was an ocean and a continent and a half way from me and I was lonely. . . . I dunno. But something about this story and these two just wormed their way into my heart and never left. I will say that I forgot about how SPICY (well, for me it’s spicy) this story was and man oh man was I in for a surprise. I was once again reminded that I am a prude when it comes to scenes like this. 😳

The one thing I really noticed about this is that the chapters are MUCH longer and I think 4-5 chapters from the web novel got condensed into one, so if you’re interested in reading this, be prepared for some long chapters. 📖

Al in all, I had a great time being back with this world and these two awkward lovers, and I’m honestly thinking about getting the published comic book. . . Big thank you goes out to Inklore and NetGalley for accepting my request to read this in exchange for an honest review, and to the author, Kim, for literally being my introduction to smutty romantacy. 🫡

Publication date: November 5!

Overall: 4.75/5 ⭐️

This was just absolutely not for me.

First off this needs triggers for SA as it's one of the very first things that happens in the book and it happens more than once.

I understand that Maxi stutters but it's played up so much that it can be quite jarring to read. It takes the miscommunication trope between the main characters to the extreme. Unfortunately I really didn't like either of them.

500 pages is way too long for this. I think it would have been a lot better getting cut maybe in half.

Maximilian (Maxi), the eldest daughter of the Croyso family, grows up being abused by her father. As a consequence of the physical and mental trauma, she develops a crippling inferiority complex about both her stutter and her physical appearance as well as a general lack of self-respect.

Beautiful art and beautiful story. Highly recommended!

The cover of this book is absolutely stunning which drew me in.
This story follows Maxi who is a Lady but completely mistreated by her father and thus married off to his grumpy Knight Rifton basically as a way to get rid of her. Rifton them immediately leaves for 3 years LOL.
When he comes back tho things between them really start to grow and heat up.
I enjoyed the romance between the 2 main characters even tho it started off a bit rough. I wasn't really a fan of how immature Maxi seemed or the miscommunication that kept the 2 from really connecting earlier on.
By the end I was fully on board tho and will definitely continue the series. I'm hoping we get more world building in the next one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Inklore for providing me with and early copy in exchange for an honest review

“Under the Oak Tree,” by Suji Kim

This was such a cute romance where the FMC learns to be herself and in love after living a life locked away. As an abused girl she had 0 confidence and tons of anxiety, and I instantly sympathize with her as a character. There was a lot of miscommunications between the two. I love reading about her growing into herself and getting more confident. It was cute but sometimes slow so I would consider it to be on the cozy read side. 4 out of 5 stars.

-Arranged Marriage
-Abused FMC/Family Abuse

Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.

I did not realize this was also a comic book! I actually read both in tandem. I loved the extra details this book gave to the comic. I liked being able to visualize and see how the illustrations matched the book, This was a good book, good spice and the storyline was interesting. I love the idea of turning the comic into a novel. My husband has agreed to read the comic and I can finally talk books with him! Thank you NetGalley. the Author Suji Kim and Inklore publishing

I really wanted to like this one because I though it was such an interesting idea turning a graphic novel into an actual novel, but unfortunately it just wasn't for me. The story started off kind of in a bad place and I just couldn't really get passed it. I can see other people liking it though.

I love this book. I already read the manwha online and was so excited to see the story in book form and I was not disappointed. Love the main characters and the twisty, turns storyline…plus the swoonworthy romance!

Starting off with the SA of the FMC by the MMC was the worst way I have seen a romance start off. Ever. I am legitimately alarmed. Unfortunately, SA is a major trigger for me, and I couldn’t bring myself to continue reading very far past the first two intimate scenes. The blurb and the light-hearted cover design didn’t hint at the dark content, which is a shame.

I loved this novel so much. This novel is a well writen story of Maximilian Calypse a beautiful women, who has a stuttering disability. Her father the Duke of Croyso belittles her and physically hurts her because of her flaws. After being forced to marry Riftan Calypse, her father makes it clear that if Riftan a simple mercenary that have become a knight, decides to divorce her she will suffer a torture worse than death.
After 3 years Riftan takes Maxi to Anatolia where they find themselves making love, she gets better with her disability and also learns healing magic. Riftan adores Maxi and their love grows everyday.

I love this book so much the characters, and world building were excellent. I can't wait for Volume 2.

Thanks to Net Galley for a copy. My opinions are personally writen and voluntary.

I've loved the web comic since sometime during season 1 and was excited to see the novelization coming out. I deeply enjoyed this. It was similar to the comic but gave just enough additional information to make it worth going through the story again. Getting inside Maxi's head and seeing how her relationship with those around her evolves. I felt like I knew Maxi and Riftan better after this.
I can't wait to read the next novelization and see where it takes Maxi and Riftan!

I had followed this story previously when it was releasing as a webcomic on Manta, which I absolutely loved, so I couldn’t wait to dive into the novel version. If you’re hesitant on fantasy, this is definitely a fantasy light read choosing to focus more on traditional medieval elements of knights and squires with the addition of mages and monsters. This also focuses more on the evolving romance between Maxi and Riftan as Maxi tries to understand her role in Riftan’s world. As someone who isn’t a fan of the miscommunication trope, so much of the book could’ve been addressed had Maxi and Riftan simply talked with each other. However, given how Maxi was raised, it’s not unsurprising that she’s not comfortable expressing her opinions and emotions. I did love seeing how Maxi grew and evolved through this volume, and I really enjoyed her friendship with Ruth, though Ruth would likely scoff at the label. The biggest pitfall this book succumbs to is having a full overarching plot. Each chapter has its own mini plot but there isn’t the same feel for the book as a whole. I’m hoping more thought is given to that in the next volume. Overall, though, I enjoyed it, and I’m looking forward to the next installment.

I’m really bummed that this wasn’t for me. Right from the beginning, I didn’t like the way Max was spoken to by anyone, and I just felt bad for her and wanted more for her. It was hard for me to really feel like I could connect with her when I mostly just felt pity, and I didn’t love that.

I looked at the artwork for the webtoon, and loved having a visual of the characters + the special edition hardcover that’s coming out is absolutely stunning, so I really do hope people pick this up and love it more than I did.

Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of this book! I voluntarily read this book, and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

actual rating: 4.25. wait!!! don’t throw tomatoes yet!! please just listen to me first!! the Manta comic has had a chokehold on me for years. i am tuned in for every update. it is a guilty pleasure of mine, okay?? we all have vices. when reading this, i was surprised to find that the comic follows the novel very closely! maybe it’s because i am used to bad book-to-show adaptations, but the comics follow the novel word for word. this just proves that Maxi and Riftan remain on top 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️ Ruth can go kick rocks though

I was really excited to start this because I loved the graphic novel but as an actual novel this was unfortunately not for me. I struggled a lot reading this book. I did enjoy the story but there was a lot of miscommunication which is not my favorite trope. Others may like this though!

⋆¾ — this was okay, kind of? think i may have requested this thinking it was the manhwa version and not the novelization (my inability to read the blurb before requesting things will be my downfall). it's unfortunate, because i actually read the first six episodes of the webtoon, and it's much more compelling in that format.

the blurb is very misleading, so i think it's actually good i went in with no expectations. "this is not a fairytale." it is, complete with stock characters with stock backgrounds in a very stock romance. riftan is the cold duke of the north archetype ml, despised by high nobility because of his lowly background, and is always away from home because he has to fight monsters. maxi is the abused daughter of high nobility, neglected in favor of her half-sister. there's even ruth, the cold, sarcastic sorcerer character. the other characters are interchangeable with each other, with how much they dislike maxi being their only distinguishable traits. while this describes 80% of all european historical romance fantasy manhwas, most successful ones do have a little individual flair to separate themselves from the rest. under the oak tree does not. (or maybe there's just no beautiful gowns in the light novel to distract me. who knows.)

"maxi will find herself and her courage, and discover that she is anything but powerless." nope! she never finds herself. her confidence "vanishes" or "evaporates" every other page when she's trying to accomplish something and then she regains it minutes later (is it really regaining anything if it is this shaky?) not because of her own capabilities but because she remembers that riftan likes her. she uses the memory of him smiling at her once as fuel throughout this entire story. that's not really "finding herself" to me.

95% of the plot is the romance, and considering the book is 500 pages long, one would think that there would be at least some development in maxi's and riftan's relationship. one would be wrong. there is no communication between the two of them. riftan starts out by literally sexually assaulting her. there's no apology or conversation about this after. nothing. and maxi truly does like him and is open to his advances, but he just starts pawing her two minutes after they first meet without verbalizing anything. she's an isolated virgin who has no friends, hasn't left her house in five years, doesn't even know what sex is. of course, she's terrified of him. he's continously pushy about sex and strips her anywhere, in front of anyone, with no care for her feelings, so it appears strange and icky even when she does reciprocate. because whether or not she reciprocates his desire is never his concern. there's a sex scene almost in every paragraph, which is questionable because not only does it add nothing to the romance, it heavily detracts. maxi and riftan have exactly three nonsexual scenes together (where they're alone and not surrounded by servants or knights). this is in a 500 page book, mind you. it gets to the point where maxi herself is surprised he wants to spend time with her outside the bedroom the first time he takes her out. and this first scene they have together? it's at 60% of the book. as in 300 pages. ??? is this even a romance at this point??? the only person to have authentic conversations with maxi, show caring towards her person, and try to help her regain her courage is ruth. riftan cares about nothing but his own ego, to the point where he starts screaming at her when she tries to learn magic and better herself. he's consistently condescending towards maxi and you get the sense he loves—fetishizes even—her weak nature so he can get an ego boost about providing for the supposedly rich ducal heir. i know maxi is shy and scared and won't talk about her home life, but what's insane is that riftan never even asks. that one horse riding scene at 60% is the first and last time he shows any concern about her likes and dislikes.

and side note: ron, roy, and laura are not fairy names. they're somebody's boomer grandparents from oklahoma. this is probably the least dislikable thing about this book, but the ridiculous names in european setting manhwas always make me cackle. like that one emperor named ebenezer? in tears.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced copy.

I was expecting this to be a cute novelization of the WEBTOON, but half way through all I got was 90% sex scenes and 10% plot - and the 10% plot was not enough to keep me hooked