Born in Syn

This sequel to Original Syn begins in the near past before rushing far into the future. The central character, genius Nathan Fell, is followed from birth, and Kander shares snippets of other characters’ stories as they intersect with Nathan’s, revealing how these family lines and people are connected to his great thirst for knowledge. Nathan seeks ultimate understanding in his field, and climbs to this summit at great cost to himself, his family, and the human race. The world plunges into a chaos ultimately fueled by Nathan’s crowning achievement. The fast-paced tale is filled with believable and authentic characters with ambiguous responses, feelings, and development, and readers will stay up way past bedtime to finish it. The most disappointing aspect is the wait for the third installment to be published.