For me, far too much time spent on “Boss,” as he was a character I cared little about. Starting this book with this character, at the point in which it did, was fine. But I had little interest in his background or what he did after the opening scene. Overall, too much time was spent on this character. I can understand the need for the author to explore other aspects of the story, as by book 7, there’s a lot of the same kind of things happening with the characters.
Having listened to a number of books by the author, I’ve noticed that he has a way of embedding into his stories lessons on what can happen if you don’t plan thoroughly, or what not to do in situations. These were well done and didn’t sound or come off like lessons from a manual of what to do and not do (unlike many other authors). This perspective of the “unlikeable” actions worked well with the story.