A Shade of Vampire 21: A Vial of Life

Our beloved Ben... as we continue his story, we find ourselves lost in a sea of disaster. We find out more about this Julie character who has betrayed our young hero and has now unknowingly unleashed chaos and violence into our story. As Ben tries to figure out and deal with his new circumstances, The Shade is under attack by an unknown enemy... at least unknown to Derek and Sofia. And the Jinn are fighting their own fates as well. Page after page, the chaos ensues and becomes more intense as we reach the final chapters. Cruelty, Diabolical, vicious, unbelievable, hate, insanity, fear... All things you will find in these pages. This is a MUST READ!

another great story in this one well lets just say we find out who side julie is on, and its not ben....however that said at least we find out why.. we know that aaron was right if ben drinks the elixer.....jeremiah is a trip he meets his uncle for the first time and well lets just say it does not go well at all ....poor river gets kidnapped.... ben learns he can enter into a person dreams and bless him for saving the day....over all great story cant wait to see how things goes with all the trauma that happens in this one.. probably the saddest story so far....well written sorry for for the delay with the review

BUT.... This is like torture. I understand why Ben drank the bottle but why does he have to go like that? I don't like that he was doomed from the start. Why does he have to be a ghost? Will he be able to drink something to let him become one with his body again, to become a normal vampire, or even human? It's too disturbing & disappointing. Seriously, please let his family get him back. I hope it's the case. All the books have been great but these last two have been hard to read. I need some resolution & satisfying closure to all this negativity. Please!!!!

I absolutely loved this book!!! Bella Forrest is so talented. I was laughing one minute, in complete terror and sobbing the next with a bit of disgust thrown in for good measure! Lots of different emotions but completely captivated the whole way through. The cliffhangers are killing me, when I got to the end I almost screamed ‘noooooo’!!! Waiting for the next book is going to be torture! Thank you for writing another amazing book Bella, I will be counting down the days until book 22 releases!

Title: A Vial of Life
Series: A Shade of Vampire
Designation: Book Twenty One of a Multi-Novel Serial, NOT a Standalone Read
Author: Bella Forrest
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Reading Platform: Kindle Unlimited
My Rating: FIVE CAPTIVATING STARS *****
Best-selling author Bella Forrest has dazzled her fans again with A Vial of Life, the latest release in her spellbinding A Shade of Vampire Series and has totally left me breathless! Like thousands of my fellow Shaddicts, I've been hooked from the very first book of the series and now anxiously await each release. And it's no surprise that Bella has delivered another riveting adventure that curls our toes, makes our hearts pound and keeps us begging for more! This is a supernatural/fantasy/adventure saga unlike anything I've ever read. It is exciting, well crafted, original, unique, imaginative, thrilling, fast paced, riveting, action packed, mysterious, suspenseful, intense, heartbreaking, heartwarming, seductive and oh so romantic. Whew, what a mouthful, but these are only a few of the words that come to mind after reading this incredible chronicle of the Shade, its inhabitants and their enemies. Can you tell that I really love this story? The narrative is exceptionally well written in the first person with multiple points of view. Each chapter is told by one of the characters which I believe gives more depth, intensity and perspective to the story and also adds to the understanding of the complexity of the characters. The dialogue is smart, well executed and flows effortlessly. Although the story is compelling, it's truly the magnificent cast of larger than life characters that makes the biggest impact. They are well developed, captivating, intriguing, engaging, endearing and quite literally, out of this world sexy! They explode from the page, grab your imagination, capture your heart and hold you totally enthralled from beginning to end. Forrest skillfully combines these elements to craft a beautifully written masterpiece of paranormal romance filled to the brim with action, adventure, fantasy, mystery, suspense, magic, supernatural beings, love, passion, loyalty, heartbreak, angst, hope and plot twists that will blow your mind.

In Book Twenty-One, Ben has been betrayed by Julie Duan, a vampire he recently met at The Tavern while seeking information. After Ben saves her life, she insists on accompanying Ben on his quest to free himself from the Elder, Basilius, but little does Ben know that her intentions are far from benevolent. In fact, she has been waiting for Ben to arrive at The Tavern for eighteen long years to capture and return him to Cruor as instructed by the Elders. As Ben is faced with an impossible decision, he chooses the ultimate sacrifice in order to continue his quest to free himself of the influence of Basilius and hopefully save both the human and supernatural realms from the ominous threat of the resurrection of the malevolent Elders thereby preventing their return to power. Tragically, Ben learns too late that some enemies as well as friends should never be trusted and finds himself in an even more precarious position. As the events of the prophecy come to pass, Ben finds himself again and again with not only the weight of worlds upon his shoulders, but also the safety and welfare of his family who are now in danger from another unexpected enemy, one his unsuspecting family will never see coming. And once again, Ben must rely on the beautiful River Giovanni for help. Sadly, this time, he may not be in a position to save the beautiful, courageous River. Oh my! More pieces to the puzzle are slowly revealed only to be replaced by even more perplexing questions. Will Ben discover the answers he so desperately needs before it's too late??? Will Ben ever be able to free himself from the life with which he has now been cursed to live??? Will he somehow find a way to rescue River? Will Jeremiah finally be able to exact his revenge??? We'll see!!! No spoilers from me but I will say this......Handsome, guilt-stricken, newly turned vampire who can't control his bloodlust-check! Beautiful half-blood heroine who gets caught up in what she once thought to be only fantasy and fairy tales-check! A plethora of supernatural characters including vampires, werewolves, witches, dragons, harpies, ogres, hawks, jinn, mermaids, mermen and even a hellhound-you bet! Danger, drama, adventure, suspense, mind blowing plot twists, an unexpected betrayal, a heartbreaking loss, an old enemy returns and a dangerous new enemy emerges-you bet! A confession of love between Ben and River-oh yes!!! That and a whole lot more! I love it! I never tire of visiting my friends of 'The Shade'. It always feels like returning home. If you love heart-wrenching young adult paranormal romance, heartbreaking angst, tantalizing magic, out of this world fantasy, spine-tingling suspense, heart-stopping action, malevolent enemies, evil machinations, unexpected plot twists and heart-pounding adventure, then you will surely enjoy A Shade of Vampire series. Buckle up my lovelies! It's another thrilling ride! Please keep in mind, this is a serial - not a stand alone story and the books should be read in order of their release - and it does contain nail biting cliffhangers that will leave you on the edge of your seat panting for more - which I love! Bella always keeps us on our toes but lovingly rewards our patience with each new release. You broke my heart in this book, Bella, but still, very well done! I can hardly wait to read what happens next with Derek, Sophia, Caleb, Rose, Ben, River, Claudia, Yuri, Vivienne, Xavier, Aiden, Corrine, Ibrahim and all the other wonderful residents of the Shade when Ben's adventure continues in Book 22! Completely captivating, seriously sexy, powerfully compelling and delightfully entertaining!!!
My Rating: FIVE MAGNIFICENTLY ENTERTAINING STARS *****

There is truly no place like The Shade, just when you think you have the story line figured out...you turn the page and their amazing journey leaves you breathless. The characters Bella has created quickly take up residence in your heart, or not...because the stories in this series are so intricate you find the characters you start off loving can turn into the ones you love to hate and visa versa. The Shade has become my favourite place, I can't wait for this story to continue...it the series I find myself never wanting to end.

After trusting a fellow vampire, named Julie. Ben finds himself at the Cruor where the weakens elders rest. Julie had stabbed in the back, taking him to the very place he needed to stay away from.

As the elder that has imprinted on his soul, approached him with the intention of taking over his body. He remembers a potion that Arron, the Hawk leader had given him. He downs it and finds himself floating out of his body. What was this potion? What was he now?

I originally started this series not even knowing what it was about. It showed up on my social media and I decided to check it. I am so glad I did. This series is by far one of my favorites. If your wanting something different, mysterious, exhilarating, and completely captivating this is it. With each new book I'm roped further into the shade. Great job Bella Forrest.

'That vial of potion may have given me life… But what kind of life is this?'

Holy cow! After the way the last book ended I couldn’t wait to find out what that ending meant for Ben and the next leg of his journey, I never expected it to be so heartbreaking! This poor kid has endured so much and I can’t even imagine how he’s going to get himself out of this current predicament. And to feel so helpless as everything else is falling apart around him, my heart totally went out to him! I really, really, really hope that things work out for him in the end. He absolutely deserves it!

This particular installment was very reminiscent of the earlier Shade books with all of the action and adventure and the fact that it took place pretty much within The Shade the entire time and focused on the core group of characters. Several things that happened early on in the series are starting to have implications now, which is really turning up the danger and suspense for our residents of The Shade! As always, this book is filled with so many twists and turns that it’ll leave your head spinning. And I can’t even begin to figure out what some of the new discoveries will mean long term for this storyline, but all I know is that these ‘bad guys’ that Bella Forrest keeps thinking up just get scarier and more deadlier as the series goes on!

I feel like Ben still has a long way to go on his journey and given how this one ends, I am nervous for what’s going to happen next! But one thing’s for sure, I can’t wait for the next installment to find out!

I love this series...I started reading it with the first book and haven't wanted to read any other books until I finished all the books of "A Shade of Vampire". I would highly recommend these books to anyone who enjoys the Vampire books like Twilight.

The story begins with the history of Julie, then shoots off in a myriad of directions, but with the great way Bella has of writing, it all makes sense and melds together brilliantly. Yet another great read, and I must say it again. I cannot recommend this series enough……think I just may read it again!

I am completely addicted to these books. I wish they would just keep going because I think I could read about the Shade and all of the characters for the rest of my life and be content!

This is an amazing series and the characters and the writing are perfect! There is never a dull moment! Once you start reading you just can't put it down and you yearn for more!

Fantastic, it's Awesome!!! What Ben did to keep the bad vampire from taking over Ben, Since Ben turned into a spiritual ghost, I wander if he's able to make his way back? Ben makes it back to the Shade, but finds out so did his cousin. Things Jerimah dose in the Shade, you must read to find out.

I absolutely love Bella Forrest! She keeps you engaged and also doesn't leave you hanging very long! I honestly believe this series needs to be turned into a television show! I love this series and once I start reading it, I cannot put it down!