I just finished book 7 in the series. My views remain the same: if only the odd-numbered books had been published the series would be almost the same. The authors use the odd-numbered books to introduce new major ideas, and the even numbered-ones to flog that idea to death and pretend that the plot arc is more complex than it really is. That said, they are amongst the better space operas out there. The characterisation of the villains is much better than most people manage, but sadly is also way better than the characterisation of the two main goodies. I'll still read the last two though.
I'm currently on book 3 of the series by Cixin Lui, "Death's End". It keeps swerving between well-done character studies, and wide arena bits that remind me of Olaf Stapleton. Or Asimov, but not in a good way. This volume should also really have been two books.
Before that I read Dan Snow's book on the Templars. For those who want a non-fantasy version of their story, it's a good easy read.
Before that was 84k by Claire North, which was the best book I've read since "Station Eleven" a couple of years ago. It is set in a grim but realisitic Dystopia, where everything has a price - even life. So the rich can do pretty much what they want as long as they can pay the fine. There's no prison though, because they aren't economic. One warning though: this is well up the literate end of SF.
The second book in the trilogy is out but the third is still in the works.
