I always put off reading this one despite the high reviews just because of the cover art. I thought the main character was the female there and what the scene looked to be - of a female nomad feeding a guy with her mouth and holding their kid - just wasn't appealing to me. The summary about this book being focused on her dad didn't appeal to me much either, as someone who's a huge fan of romance but could take or leave family relationships.
However, after exhausting a whole ton of other otome isekais up to their latest season and on the search for any more, I decided to give this one a shot. I pretty much binged the last half (fifty or so chapters) all at once. Let me just preface by saying what looked to me to be a seductive woman who has a kid in the cover is not remotely the focus. What is is the father-daughter relationship, but there is still romance and the story's really worth reading.
It starts off slow - and even a little annoying, tbh - with the female lead fake-acting sweet. Despite the very good art and her being a very cute kid, this didn't really appeal to me. And despite it being hinted early on that maybe there's a reason the emperor's so cold and ruthless, I still didn't like to see him being so cruel to his daughter either. Didn't really like seeing either of them basically lol, but the art was really pretty and the story seemed fine so I kept reading over the next couple days.
Then, the emperor started to warm up a bit. It was still annoying to see him so cold to her, but hey at least something's happening in this story. And after that, the plot really started rolling.
The author did such an amazing job with pacing. The worries and struggles the female lead has are relatable, and you can feel the tension this causes even while it's in the background. How the plot unfolds is done so well, with events unfurling with this character and with that, like a well-orchestrated play. Everything builds up to the climax, and then we're held there waiting for the resolution.
Gotta say, though, the last part was like fifty or so chapters from when it started to when it resolved. While it was all out so I could read it all at once, if I had to wait chapter by chapter for fifty of them before what I wanted to see happen did... oof. If it had been resolved quicker it would've been unrealistic and I don't feel as if any of those chapters were bad, but still.
The art makes reading this a joy. The emperor and all the men really serve as plenty of eye candy, and the female lead is so pretty. It's not all tension and stress and there are lighthearted and happy moments throughout, which only serve to help define the characters' personalities and their growth.
I've talked about how the story tells itself, but the content of the story itself is also well thought out. Everyone's motives, the mix of conflicting feelings, and people's flaws - all of that is drawn on and shown. The author keeps her focus on telling one overarching narrative and weaves all the characters into this one thread. Since in the end this is just one narrative it's nothing complex or confusing. It's just one story told very well and illustrated with a lot of detail.
I was on the fence when I started, but between the skilled storytelling and beautiful art, I'd really recommend this.
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