Ancillary Sword

After the huge revelations of the first book, this is a very quiet, tame book by comparison. The plot moves directly on from the first book, with Breq being given her own starship and sent to a star system in an obscure corner of the Radch empire. However, the lack of epic empire-wide action gives the characters room to breath, and lets the author delve more deeply into the rich culture established in the first novel, the iniquities of an imperialist society, and the nature of personhood and individuality. So while not anywhere near as exciting as Ancillary Justice, Ancillary Sword is well worth a read.