>I made the mistake of reading The Emperor’s Soul shortly after reading Frankenstein.
In some ways, they are surprisingly similar tales: both involve the
artificial creation of what is effectively a new conscious being. Yet
while Frankenstein unflinchingly explores the dubious morality of such an undertaking, The Emperor’s Soul largely ignores the issue.

This is probably the key. By reading your post, it seems like you have been looking so hard for parallels to Frankenstein that the search itself has colored your experience. A lot of your comments make me wonder if we even read the same book.

I would almost try reading the book again in a year or so and see if your perception changed.