SPOILERS
Beginning is great. The FL who travelled back in time after she died attempts to change her fate. She has a supportive father and 3 romance interests. Her main motive is to avoid marrying the prince due to her trauma in previous life (not treated well by the prince) and become the family heir.
The middle and ending is disappointing. The story has a good foundation but her main love interest being the prince ruins it. She ends up falling in love with him again after trying to avoid her initial fate. I don't know how she forgave him for considering he was so abusive and traumatic to her in her first life (killing her father, abusive, caused her miscarriage, favoured another woman over her who couldn't do any of the work required for an empress). As a result, all the work fell on the queen, the FL, who endured hardships caused by the prince.
I can't even really blame her supposed 'rival' since she's just a 16 year old girl who was transported by the world's God from modern day Korea into the FL world. After the FL was killed by the prince in her initial timeline the other girl also suffered from the princes abuse since she could not to the duties of an empress. All she really wants is to go home and live her life in Korea. She ends up being a saintess of some sorts and uses her one wish to help everyone in the climax of the book? (If im remembering correctly) many people shit on her but out of all the characters I didnt find her nearly as repulsive as some of the other ones.
The main conflict, which I thought would be the prince and other girl, ends up being completely different (an evil family trying to ruin the royal family if I remember correctly). Regardless, the main issue is anticlimactic and kind of disappointing. Her whole initial motive disappeared as she fell in love with the prince, married him, and lived as his empress. The other MLs were better. Specifically the red haired one who had great chemistry with her and shared her ideals.
I only really stuck around for the side characters, mainly the FL dad and to see how the ending played out. I'm happy the FL got her happy ending, but man was this story disappointing. A positive though is that I feel she is a strong FL who tries to overcome her obstacles with the help of those around her. It's nice to see a FL recognising they don't need to struggle by themselves and can seek help.
The best part of the story is definitely when we follow her life as a child (the beginning of the story after she is reincarnated). The FL was cute and it was nice seeing her distant relationship with her father improving in her new life.
I remember back when this was rated 9.6 in the beginning. It really dropped when people realised the main ML would be the prince.
The Abandoned Empress