I really enjoyed the premise of not only the protagonist being a regressor, but
the male lead as well.
I enjoyed that they weren't both overpowered or perfect and actually struggled with the challenges they had to face. That being said, there were frustrating moments in which I hoped the two of them would have a little bit of spine.
At first, I wasn't a fan of the male lead, but after a few chapters that explained the situation, I understood his position and regrets, and I also understood that the female lead wasn't entirely innocent either.
She pushed a marriage he didn't want, and because her father is a POS, he of course took advantage of the situation to manipulate both the male lead and her, unbeknownst to our protagonist.
A few chapters before I dropped, I was really hopeful that he and the female lead's relationship was getting better, considering how he had wholeheartedly devoted himself to her and their son, and she saw that devotion. I was too optimistic.
After the nonsensical choice of the author, there's a damn three year timeskip for no reason but to establish how the female lead is an independent woman who is capable and doesn't need the male lead. No one said she did?! Can't you show her being badass and capable without making her do such a nonsensical, ill-timed decision?!
They just went through an assassination attempt and she thinks divorcing will be safe?! If she and her son aren't safe while being the duchess and the heir, will they be safe if she's a viscountess?! MAKE IT MAKE SENSE!
Immediately after the timeskip, it's clear her poor son is being left alone because she is just too busy to spend time with him... So her smart idea was to not only
take the boy away from a loving, caring and devoted father who would do ANYTHING for them, but to leave him alone playing with elemental spirits and being watched by maids?! HOW IS THAT BETTER?!
So, yeah. I mostly dropped this because of the developments after chapter 40, including the dumb timeskip and the female lead's petty and ridiculous decision
to divorce the male lead after he apologized and confessed, after he swore he would protect both her and their son with his life, after she SAW him ready to die for them
.
TLDR; I rarely drop anything, because I can enjoy a trashy story, but this is the wrong kind of trashy to me. The female lead completely went from a traumatized woman trying to be the best mother she can while navigating her grief and resentment for the man she believed was the reason for her suffering, to a petty dumbass who would risk her child's safety just because she can get one up on the male lead.
The divorce was too much for me, especially when it's shown her poor son rarely sees her because she's too busy proving she's a girlboss to spend time with him. Isn't that all she wanted? To be in his life and see him grow up? Oh, but your absence as a mother is fine if you're the one who decides not to be there, sure