Date - 13th August 2026
Book Title - Under the Oak Tree
Author - Suji Kim
This was the first book I finished of 2026, and the first audiobook that I fully listened to. I read the first 70 or so chapters of the webtoon a few years ago, and I remembered enjoying the story. When I saw on a book group on Facebook that people were buying (beautiful) light novel editions of the story, I decided that I wanted to give it another go, and I will definitely be finishing the series later.
Genre - Romance Fantasy (Light Novel)
Year Released - 2024
Length - Around 384 pages
Series or Standalone - series (I've finished Volume 1)
How I Read - Audiobook (and a little of the webtoon a few years ago)
Other Adaptations - Light Novel and Webtoon
Summary
Maxi Calypse is shunned by her father, Duke Croyso, and family due to her speech impediment. She is forced to marry a commoner knight, Sir Riftan, so that he can fight in her father’s stead. When he returns as a national war hero, he takes her away to his castle. As she embarks on her new married life, she realises that she’s worth far more than she was raised to believe.
Perspective - Third Person, Past Tense
Tropes - Arranged Marriage, Coming of Age, Courtly Intrigue, Found Family, Grumpy and Sunshine, Miscommunication, Touch them and Die
Triggers - Abuse (Sexual, Physical and Emotional), Ableism, Classism, Forced Marriage, Self-Loathing, Violence
Review
Setting and Atmosphere
Under the Oak Tree is inspired by the Medieval and early Renaissance era of Europe in terms of clothing and style. As a historian, I love the fact that it’s a story that takes elements from an earlier time period. The novel starts in Duke Croyso’s castle, which we don’t get to see too much of, but the details of Calypse Castle in Anatol can make you feel like you’re there. Suji Kim does a brilliant job of making it feel like a desolate and forgotten place at the start of the novel.
The novel does rely a little more on dialogue rather than descriptions at times, especially when it comes to explaining the world to readers.
Characters and Development
Maxi, as the main character, can be a bit frustrating at times. She has a speech impediment and a severe lack of confidence due to her traumatic upbringing. However, the fact that you feel that same frustration as a reader is testament to how Suji Kim introduces Maxi; you’re made to believe in her own lack of self-confidence. You can feel the distaste and awkwardness throughout the start of the book through the interactions of the characters. As Maxi grows in confidence throughout the story, through her interactions with Ruth and the young knights in particular, you can feel the change in the tone of the book.
A key element of the story is miscommunication between Riftan and Maxi, instigated by both parties. Personally, I get a bit frustrated by the miscommunication trope, but I feel like in this instance it’s dealt with swiftly enough in the story that I could gloss over the trope. For a series, the fact that the miscommunication is identified by Maxi and Riftan within the first volume creates a different dynamic between the two characters than in similar style webtoons and light novels.
Riftan himself is a classic ‘touch her and you die’ sort of character; he’s tall and muscular, and sometimes forgets his own strength when it comes to Maxi. He feels like an unrealistic character at times, particularly when it comes to the explicit scenes, and his personality seems a bit flat at moments. He’s overprotective (again, a familiar trope within the genre), which can often feel stifling.
In terms of the supporting characters, the highlights are definitely the younger of the Remdragon Knights and Ruth. Whilst their personalities at times can feel a bit similar to each other, their interactions with each other and the main characters are enjoyable.
Pacing and Plot Development
This is when I personally think that the story falls down a little. Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy Under the Oak Tree and will be finishing the series in the future. But, I don’t think that the pacing quite compares to many of the other books that I’ve read in the genre. Hopefully this is just a symptom of being the start of a series and focuses on establishing the world, and the next installment (which I’m hoping to read later this year) will be a bit more action-packed.
The novel starts with a high promise of action (outside of the bedroom) when there's combat on the road, but it’s hardly touched on again in the novel. There is one moment where there is a bit more action, but it’s very brief and leans more towards castle politics than the combat. Although, due to Maxi’s timid nature, I feel that this could be a bit more in depth too. Obviously that’s because the story is primarily from Maxi’s perspective, but considering that the Remdragon Knights and Sir Riftan are famous war heroes, I personally would like to see a little more of the grittier side of knights and castles.
Prose and Writing Style
I found this easy to read (well, listen to); Suji Kim’s style was nice and flowed well throughout the book, making it an enjoyable read. The language isn’t too complex or specific in terms of the historical elements (e.g. the castle or armour descriptions), so if you are more interested in the fantasy or romance elements as opposed to historical accuracy for the knights and castle then you will find it to be an approachable read.
The only parts that required a little more brain-power in terms of listening was the moment where Maxi and another character are discussing currency. Whilst this dialogue was needed for Maxi to grow as a character, I personally couldn’t get my head around all of the information (although that may have been different if I was reading the novel instead of listening to it). I also don’t think that the webtoon was as in-depth with this part, although it was a few years ago that I read that.
Similar to:
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| Serpent & Dove (Shelby Mahurin, novel) |
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| Marriage of Convenience (Ken/ hanuen/ Antstudio, webtoon) |
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