Am I missing something

So I've looked and seen that people have been having my same problem of slow leveling and people have had the exact opposite so I'm simply going to say the facts of my playthrough

I'm playing on balanced difficulty I'm level 4 and my current party I'd half dead. I've talked my way through the blighted village up to the party and haven't entered the temple yet. I know I have Ethel to take care of and I left redcaps alive as well and I have to take down a named Gnoll and his goons. I cheesed the owlbear, found the emerald grove back entrance, and saved the flaming fist from the burning building. I did the spiders in the well and the paladins for Karlach's quest and are the reason my party is half dead and I know I can't do the finish the master work quest.

So my question comes to am I missing any quests that can get me to or close to level 5 so I don't get decimated by some of the level 5+ enemies