It seems to have bogged down in character development and examining his magic system. I am not opposed to those things but it would be nice if managed to advance the story in the process. The biggest issue is I just don't seem to care what happens to the characters. Hopefully the second half is better because at this point in my life I'm not willing to slug my way 10 slow paced books hoping it will suddenly be as good as first few.
Right now the main reason I want to finish it is so I can start Persepolis Rising.