Empire in Black and Gold question

I had no problem getting into any of these books, and read one of them in five days or something, around work and studying. I really have fallen in love with this series, currently on book four, and I'll be both elated and sad to see the end of the series.

As for Stenwold, I like him as a character, and his oldness is a rather prominent feature in both the way he thinks and acts. He is the intelligence behind the operation, I guess, though he does seem to be a bit out of his depth throughout the books I have read so far, always unlucky in where he sends his charges to 'be safe' and second guessing his own orders and actions.

I think he's more useful than Che, at any rate, who seems to spend most of her time getting captured and then released again...

I think most of the Beetles are pretty useless, it's their inventions that are special - and Stenwold's artifice is rusty.

I think Che is brilliant though, but she doesn't really come into her own until book 5.

I think Stenwold is important since he's experienced and has "connections" that can further the cause of resisting/defeating the empire. Even though he's older than "The Flying Felblings", he seems willing to take risks himself, and not just have others do the dirty work for him. A great character, and and great book , i look forward to reading the others.

Er, without giving away any spoilers, yes Stenwold takes an active interest at various points. One of the many great things about this series is that it is constantly evolving. So by the time you get to the end of book 4, the world has changed and shifted again and it is not the same as the start of book 1. Unlike some other big series, you get to book 5 and it's still the same old thing, we're building up to the big battle or whatever. With this series the world, and also very importantly, the characters change, with every book including Stenwold and his role. That's the best way I can describe it without giving away any plot info.

Well if it was not for Stenwald's efforts I think Collegium would have fallen to the Wasps years ago.
He is certainly more useful than his annoying niece Che who needs to constantly be rescued.

Stenwold is far from useless. He is one of the smartest and most experienced characters and he was the only one who knew and cared what is going on decades before the others.

And I think all the Che hate is ridiculous. She is also NOT useless. Che has been my favorite since book 1 and I absolutely disagree with you. She is great before, during and after book 5.