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Vitro Jessica Khoury Books

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Vitro Jessica Khoury Books

Actual rating 3.75 stars.

I initially read the first novel of this collection over two years ago, and while I enjoyed ‘Origin,’ it felt like there was something missing. ‘Vitro’ and the third book in this trilogy ‘Kalahari’ are not sequels, but rather companion novels, it is easy to see a marked improvement in Khoury’s storytelling skills with each installment. None of these novels need to be read in order either, they are all strong standalones set in the same universe.

‘Vitro’ marks a great adventure from Jessica Khoury. One thing with her books is that they are thoroughly researched. The landscape is so picturesque and oozes from the page, so too does the science – though fictitious, there are enough of the basics honed in science fact to give a sense of believability. You really feel like you’re there along with the protagonist. Just brilliant. 

Sophie was a great main character. I liked her do or die attitude. She doubted herself very little even though she struggled with emotional demons and desired a place to belong. I wrestled more with the story towards the end - so much happened that I couldn't as easily connect with Sophie or her choices. But still a great journey to read along with.

Sophie’s love interest, Jim was my hero. Literally my new fictional boyfriend crush. He was like a zombie - Khoury threw everything at this guy and he just kept getting back up! Loved it. I almost wished there was a spin off adventure series for Jim. I've read that this trilogy is the end for the corpus series - but really there are infinite possibilities to revisit and write more. I'm a big believer in never say never...

The pacing was better than ‘Origin,’ there were just a few moments where the narrative felt waffly, either in exposition or dialogue. But it was easy to skim past and get to the good stuff. 

Something about the concept of this book that was morbidly fascinating. It didn't sit well with me... I guess because of its implications. I squirmed a bit. It also felt a little unfinished, or not fully realised as the concepts in ‘Origin.’ There also seemed to be a lot of layers of story with ‘Vitro’ too. I loved the complexity, but it came close to feeling messy. I think the subtext of the book is what left me most uncomfortable‎. The different shades of humanity we see coming out in the different characters and how it ask us some big questions. 

Again Khoury's writing style and explicit description of landscape was thoroughly engaging. If she wrote travel books I'd never have to leave home. 

Definitely an engaging read that I’d recommend to lovers of adventure with a science fiction twist. I had no hesitation in purchasing the final book in this collection ‘Kalahari,’ the review for that one is to come later this month.


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Vitro Jessica Khoury Books Reviews

Just finished back to back reading of Origin and Vitro. Jessica Khoury is officially the newest addition to my Favorite-Author list of YA Science Fiction.

I bought Vitro armed with reviews, both positive and negative.

I was ready to be confused by the different points of view that the story was told from. Instead, seeing how events were lived from different perspectives gave more depth to the story. Besides, that's how we all live life, right? From our own perspective.

I was ready for long technical explanations. Instead, I was pleased with how information was delivered. The only conversation that seemed at all long considering all the chaos that was going on outside, was one between Sophie and her Mother. Still, taking a small break from all the fast action to discover more of Sophie's and Moira's history was a needed breather.

Could I fault the story like other reviewers did for its lack of emotional character development? Perhaps. But I didn't miss it. This was not a story with magical elements like in Origin. This was fast-paced Sci Fi action where character actions are motivated, and evolve, by extenuating circumstances of the moment. If a few of her science facts were slightly off, they didn't deter from the story.

And, still, the magic of Ms Khoury's words that paint descriptions, and you wouldn't expect in YA Sci Fi, was ever present.

Like this action passage

"Jim’s plane burst into a ball of flame, lighting the sky like a thousand fireworks. Blazing debris shot in every direction, fireballs trailing sparks to land, hissing in the ocean. Like a horrible burning flower the explosion continued to blossom, getting bigger and brighter, casting red light over the palms and the water, the flames reflecting on the undulating surface of the ocean."

Or her ability to throw in a graphically poetic description like in this passage

"Her heart had sunk lower and lower, until she felt as if she were dragging it behind her on a string, and now it lay pathetically at her feet like a despondent pet."

Or a favorite thought that I've used for years like

“The first step toward being free is recognizing that you’re not."

These are all just part of the reason I'm a fan of Ms Khoury's writing.

Add on her willingness to ask hard multi-layered questions, and write about them, endears me to her writing even more. Where does fault lie? In the creation or the creator? What happens when noble dreams go awry? What if you don't take control of your own destiny and, instead, let yourself be manipulated piece by piece until the Corporate machine owns you? Can you even take control when conditioning is so ingrained? Where is the line between love and need? Projection or expression? At one point does free-will end, and slavery begin? And vice versus?

I don't need to talk about the story itself. The author has provided a story line in the description. Other reviewers have gone into more depth in explaining the story from their point of view. offers a peek inside.

So what's next? Buy the book. Decide for yourself. After all, that's a main message in the story's theme.
Interesting. Need both books for full understanding
Actual rating 3.75 stars.

I initially read the first novel of this collection over two years ago, and while I enjoyed ‘Origin,’ it felt like there was something missing. ‘Vitro’ and the third book in this trilogy ‘Kalahari’ are not sequels, but rather companion novels, it is easy to see a marked improvement in Khoury’s storytelling skills with each installment. None of these novels need to be read in order either, they are all strong standalones set in the same universe.

‘Vitro’ marks a great adventure from Jessica Khoury. One thing with her books is that they are thoroughly researched. The landscape is so picturesque and oozes from the page, so too does the science – though fictitious, there are enough of the basics honed in science fact to give a sense of believability. You really feel like you’re there along with the protagonist. Just brilliant. 

Sophie was a great main character. I liked her do or die attitude. She doubted herself very little even though she struggled with emotional demons and desired a place to belong. I wrestled more with the story towards the end - so much happened that I couldn't as easily connect with Sophie or her choices. But still a great journey to read along with.

Sophie’s love interest, Jim was my hero. Literally my new fictional boyfriend crush. He was like a zombie - Khoury threw everything at this guy and he just kept getting back up! Loved it. I almost wished there was a spin off adventure series for Jim. I've read that this trilogy is the end for the corpus series - but really there are infinite possibilities to revisit and write more. I'm a big believer in never say never...

The pacing was better than ‘Origin,’ there were just a few moments where the narrative felt waffly, either in exposition or dialogue. But it was easy to skim past and get to the good stuff. 

Something about the concept of this book that was morbidly fascinating. It didn't sit well with me... I guess because of its implications. I squirmed a bit. It also felt a little unfinished, or not fully realised as the concepts in ‘Origin.’ There also seemed to be a lot of layers of story with ‘Vitro’ too. I loved the complexity, but it came close to feeling messy. I think the subtext of the book is what left me most uncomfortable‎. The different shades of humanity we see coming out in the different characters and how it ask us some big questions. 

Again Khoury's writing style and explicit description of landscape was thoroughly engaging. If she wrote travel books I'd never have to leave home. 

Definitely an engaging read that I’d recommend to lovers of adventure with a science fiction twist. I had no hesitation in purchasing the final book in this collection ‘Kalahari,’ the review for that one is to come later this month.