This volume is just as enjoyable as the first; a nice mix of action and meaningful character development with some romance built in, and genuine romance not just "action movie relationship" level dalliances. This volume is a bit more formulaic than the last; the plot developments are easy to anticipate and some of the discussions involve characters agonizing over decisions that you already know the answer to.Two other things that I didn't mind but might throw some off: 1. The constant first person narrative wasn't too much to deal with in the first book, but there are a lot more characters that get the spotlight this time around, so following it can get confusing at times. 2. Every so often, there will be passages where the characters make reference to recalling the story from some time in the future, which obviously takes a lot of the sting out of the tense moments, since you know those characters can't possibly die. I didn't mind it because I find reading about the circumstances exciting apart from the possibility of anyone dying, but people who are annoyed at a clear "star character/redshirt" delineation might be put off by it.
I had no idea that Song in the Silence even had a sequel. One of my friends mentioned it in passing, and I nearly fainted because the first book was absolutely amazing. Usually, sequels don't match up to the first book.This one does. The Lesser Kindred focuses on Varien and Lanen's relationship and Berys' desire to become all-powerful. New characters, such as Will and Salera, are introduced and their importance does not become evident until later. The Kantri experience a crisis that (view spoiler)[ forces them to flee their island or die (hide spoiler)]
