Sincery I love historical dramas but I won't recommend this one because the storyline is really dissapointing, you can get hoocked because of the cliffangers and also good actings (lead and secondary roles as well) but the overall impression is not that good. If you like people holding hands and bunch of political revelations, this is for you. Lots of angst and crying scenes too. Otherwise, look for another drama.

The good point is the stress on confuceen and boudhist backgrounds, we always forget now how ancestor teachings and religion are important in the past. I also really enjoy some cute scenes where the poor princess finally smiles and lives for herself, the humble life in the village with the kid and the other couple. I also like the idea of a second-chance lifetime. But there is too much intrigues and plot twists that definitely kill the mood. Again, I don't blame the acting but the storytelling.

I expected a new way to reflect on the past. We do know that it's not easy to be a woman, and more being a widowed-princess in this time. Here, the whole storyline is rather conservative, with eternal damzel-in-distress rescue scenes.
(Spoilers here)
It really looks like dramas I saw long before, with scenes like a pair of males shoes and female shoes in front of the room which suggests... that they 've done it. The main couple interactions are nice but oh ! So old-fashioned !
The female lead is really graceful (nice bows) but flawless and somewhere annoying, being really the ideal asian type of sweet and docile wife. For example, she is good at archery and there is only ONE scene where she use it, and at the end of the fight, the male lead pull the arc from her because she must not take the burden of killing people (= She is too fragile).
I feel so lost with the alliances and family revelations (so many princes-to-be-king!). And the ending is really inconsistant: the main couple has made a promise to be together in spite of all. But, as soon as the policital matters end, she choose to have her way in becoming a nun! She finally flees with the male-lead, thanks to him (again), she changes her mind.
I really don't why this drama scored so well, maybe the kind of nostalgia vibes.