[ 717 ]

[katara]

Under the Oak Tree, Vol. 2 by Suji Kim

Series:
Under the Oak Tree (Light Novel)

Genre:
Manhua, Korean Literature, Fantasy, Romantasy, Light Novel, Romance, Historical Fiction, High Fantasy, Spicy Romance, Medieval Age, Asian Literature

Publication Date:
June 30, 2025

Pages Numbers:
416

Read Date:
February 5th, 2026 - February 6th, 2026

Rating:
5/5

Blurb:

Most fairytales end with a wedding and a happily-ever-after—but this is no fairytale. The updated and official translation of Under the Oak Tree, the #1 webnovel on MANTA, continues in this second volume.

As her first winter in Anatol turns to spring, Lady Maximilian finds herself confronting an unfamiliar hope. Her voice and her magic strengthen every day; the only parts of Calypse Castle left to refurbish are its gardens, which she plans to fill with blooming flowers; and the way her husband, the recalcitrant war hero Sir Riftan, looks at her from across their bedroom makes her feel, for the first time in her life, that she might be worthy of love and affection.

However, Maxi's life is never that easy. Just as she begins to feel at home with Riftan, Maxi receives a surprise visit from Princess Agnes, the renowned sorceress who might have become Riftan's wife if he'd decided to divorce Maxi after the Dragon Campaign. Not at all what Maxi expected, the princess stirs up complicated emotions and politics that could lead to monumental changes in Maxi and Riftan's relationship.

This volume collects chapters 77-133 of the original webnovel by Suji Kim.

Review:

I went to read the manhwa and I love Riff and Maxi together. The only thing I do have against their relationship is the way he treats her, not like a wife, but a child he needs to be put into time-out.

But I also understood Maxi too. Here was the princess, the one woman who Maxi believed could easily steal her husband from her. They had history. They were even engaged. So, Maxi's fears were real and understandable.

I can see why a lot of people see their relationship as toxic, but I also see the positive side of things too. I think in his own way he does love her but he's been out there slaying monsters, so he doesn't know how to approach Max, plus he is extremely protective of her.

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[katara]

Cleopatra by Saara El-Arifi

Genre:
Netgalley, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Mythology, Retellings, Fiction, Adult, Egyptian Mythology

Publication Date:
February 24, 2026

Page Numbers:
352

Read/Finished Date:
February 7th, 2026

Rating:
5/5

Premise:

Queen, Legend, Cleopatra tells her own story in this evocative and sensuous historical epic Cleopatra, from the bestselling and award-winning author of Faebound and The Final Strife .

YOU KNOW MY NAME.
BUT YOU DO NOT KNOW ME.

Your historians call me seductress, but I was always in love's thrall.

Your playwrights speak of my witchcraft, but I was gifted my talents by the gods.

Your poets sing of my blood-lust, but I was protecting my children.

They cannot credit that a mere woman could be powerful, strategic, divinely blessed to rule.

Death will silence me no longer.

This is not the story of how I died. But how I lived.

Review:

The historical portrayal of Cleopatra VII, the last active pharaoh of the Ptolemaic Kingdom, has always had a complex relationship with accounts of her life, with most of the accounts being written in a negative light. Everything from being called a witch to a wicked seductress, but there was much more to Cleopatra than what history and mythology have said about her.

In Cleopatra, Saara El-Arifi peels back the layers of history and gives Cleopatra, one of the most fascinating women of her time, a voice that crosses eons to tell. We hear her tell of growth, power, and resilience beyond the myths and misconceptions laid upon her name.

Cleopatra was always fascinating to me. I saw a woman with power, and in a world of men, that meant she was a threat to the patriarchy. I like how she is given a voice here and we can listen to her. See through the eyes of the world changing around her and new characters come and go in her life. The author was great at bringing her to life.


Thank you to NetGalley, Ballantine Books, and the author, Saara El-Arifi, for the chance to review this book.