Books like The Awakened Mage

The Innocent Mage wasn't a bad read but a vast majority of it was filler. It was a nice way to introduce the cast but it drug on for a rather long time before actually getting to the "meat" of the book. The Awakened Mage feels the same way. It drags on for so long, in fact, that over halfway through the book I began to wonder if there would be a third installment simply because I couldn't imagine this book wrapping up in time. I was shocked when I realized that this is, indeed, the end of this part of the story; I was on the edge of my seat wondering how Miller pulled it off.It has a little more to it than The Innocent Mage but way too much time is spent inside the minds of the characters rather than on the main plot.What's even more disappointing is that, despite the large amount of time the author dedicates to everything but actively pushing the main plot, most of the characters fail to grow. The main character begins the series as an annoying jerk and is even more frustrating by the end of the tale. He's no hero and yet he's referred to as a good guy all throughout the series. Having everyone say he's a good guy isn't enough; you actually need to show it which Miller failed to do.Then there is the female lead, Dathne, who starts out as a strong, intelligent woman but turns into a blathering fool. Her dialogue by the end of the series is so unlike her it's uncomfortable to read.The only character that really makes much of a change is Darran. I don't think that spending this much time on "filler" should result in undeveloped characters... So much potential wasted. I don't want to hate my hero! Give your readers something - a redeemable quality, an interesting backstory, anything.Also an issue is the fact that all of this magic exists and it all ties together somehow and yet by the end of this book, you aren't really sure how. You know this does this and that does that but have no idea why. You don't understand why Barl made the decisions that she did or why she was treated like a holy figure.. And once you realize why Morg is so evil, you can't help but go, "What? Really? That's it?!"I think the idea is interesting but the execution was sloppy. If you want me to invest more time in reading your work, give me a good reason to. Between the two books you are already looking at over 1200 pages; I don't think I should have to delve into yet another installment to understand certain plot points when the first two books were so disappointing.