I finished Timothy Zahn's
Night Train to Rigel the other day, and it got better, mostly.
What was good: holy shit, it is intriguing. I mean, this is one of those plots that is incredibly well put together, very intricate, and leaves few-to-no threads hanging. It's certainly the best thing about the book, pulling you along very effectively and keeping you excited even when you want to punch all of the characters in the throat. Just about every little detail was explained, even things that were casually mentioned at the beginning that I'd totally forgotten about.
( Vague spoilers ) The worldbuilding (universe-building?) is also pretty keen, with very decent amounts of attention paid to the various cultures and creatures that exist, without feeling too heavy-handed or as if the author was overly eager to show it off.
What was not good: ... sadly, this list is a little long, but I will preface it with the statement that it is mostly forgivable because the plot is more than enough to keep you reading. Alright, then. The characters were mostly (if not totally) unsympathetic, each for a different and entirely dislikeable reason; Frank and most of his friends are completely unlikeable, and Frank himself is particularly irritating because of how self-righteously and intentionally mysterious he is.
( Another vague spoiler ) Which brings me to Bayta. Oh, gods, Bayta.
Everything is wrong with this character.
( and most of it is spoiler-ish. )The other characters aren't much better. You can count on wanting them all to die horribly, but try to ignore them if you can, because as negative as I've been about everything else, it really is an entertaining read with a great story.