This novel has a few good ideas (e.g. the imago thingy), but is unable to build an interesting plot on them. Also, with the exception of the protagonist, characters feel quite monodimensional and I couldn't feel any empathy for them.
Worldbuilding has a few good points, but in the end it didn't really feel like we were talking about a GALACTIC empire. It felt more like a medieval kingdom, ruled by a handful of people.
Moreover, story unfolds WAY too slowly. Plot is quite simple, it needed some faster pacing in my opinion.
I don't think I'll keep reading this saga.