Inked Armor (The Clipped Wings Series Book 2)

This book is intense, emotional, heart-wrenching, romantic, and ultimately very satisfying. This one continues the story of Tenley and Hayden begun in Clipped Wings. Both of them were/are still trying to find their way after tragedies rocked them to the core in their pasts. Tenley's trauma was more recent and she lost more people, friends and her entire family, than Hayden. Hayden's parents were murdered years ago and while he has overcome his drug/addiction problem in the aftermath and managed to establish a successful and satisfying tattoo parlor with his best friends, he still hasn't been able to reconcile the guilt he feels or have a meaningful relationship. In order to function, he became compulsive about everything being neat, organized, and in its proper place because he needed the routine and control. Despite their pasts, he and Tenley developed a fragile emotional connection that was a balm for both of them. When Tenley abruptly returns to her hometown after the unexpected appearance of her (almost) brother-in-law and all contact between Hayden and her is severed, Hayden is an emotional wreck. I admit that I was very disappointed with Tenley when she just walked away from him like that. She did need to resolve some issues at home, but she should've explained the situation to Hayden before she left and kept in touch with him until she returned. The mystery surrounding the unsolved murder of Hayden's parents is finally resolved, and Hayden and Tenley finally achieve their HEA (Happily Ever After). This one is highly recommended.

Some reviewers liked this book less than the previous book and while I don't agree, I can see why. Inked Armour doesn't start well. For reasons that didn't make a whole lot of sense Tenley has left Chicago with her brother-in-law to be and gone back to her home town. She stays there for three weeks and never responds to Haden's frantic calls, but she does manage to find time to correspond with the female members of their little group leaving Haden feeling justifiably betrayed.Haden has completely fallen apart. The stress of Tenley leaving him opens the floodgates to his unresolved feelings about his parents' murder. One night after a particularly traumatic dream of Tenley lying in bed with a bullet hole in her chest Haden calls Tenley. Groggy from sleep she picks up the phone and is basically surprised that her actions affected him. ????? How do you leave your boyfriend and not think that will affect him? She runs a few errands and then drives to Chicago that night. Instead of going directly to him even though he's in such a mess she tries to find her female friend who has a key to her apartment so she can sleep before talking to Haden (knowing that he has nightmares that are crushing him). Haden also has a key. The friend doesn't pick up her calls so Tenley goes to the strip club where the friend works and runs into Haden's longtime f-buddy who wants him back. Despite feeling she has to drop everything to get to him she manages to do several errands back home and chase her friend around for a while. It's a lot of dumb plot mechanisms to create strife.The saving grace for me is that Tenley has destroyed Haden's trust in her and he doesn't let her off easily. She does a fair amount of groveling and their relationship takes time to repair. Once again, we experience this through the characters thanks to the first person point of view of each of them.This book is mostly about Haden finally dealing with his parents' deaths and I found that very interesting.One thing really bothered me, though. Love is described as "This is what love felt like - this unyielding, overwhelming need for someone that wiped out everything else." THIS IS UNREALISTIC. LOVE IS DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE. I know people who are denying themselves love because no matter what they feel for a person, unless it falls under this exact description it must not be true love, which is really sad. People, Inked Armour's description of love is artistic license - the hyperreality of romance novels. I love my husband more than anything and ours is a quiet happiness that we can dip into to feel strong and it helps us deal with the things life throws at us. Your experience with love can be the same as in this book, but it probably won't be because you're not fictional and because you and your partner aren't Tenley and Haden.Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I do want to say that I liked this book. There is another short story about two of the other characters, but I'm going to skip it.

Emotional, angsty read full of heart... This book had all the qualities that I found lacking in the first book of the series. It was well-paced, portrayed the emotional turmoils characters were through in a perfect way, romanticized only enough to keep the story going, but left all pretty realistic, and I definitely loved all the answers that we were given - the closure to the story that we needed, as well as the closure Hayden was looking for since the beginning. Both Tenley and Hayden had a lot of their past to deal with, a lot of bad expectations to let go of, a lot of love and hope to let in. Their breaking free of the bast was both heartbreaking and beautiful to be a part of. The story was great, the writing amazing, it drew you in and didn't let go. It's the story you read in one breath, the story you think of long after you finished the book. For me, it was a bit darker than the first book, definitely more emotional as some older demons were awoken, and heartbreaking; but sexy, full of hope and dreams for future as well. Definitely recommended read!

MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS - It is crazy, unbelievable really, that someone like Hayden who found his parents murdered when he came home from a night of partying and someone like Tenley who lost her entire family & fiance in a plane crash would come together in intense passion & need & heal each other. But that is exactly what happens. Tenley ran back home for some odd reason, guilt probably, but ended up settling the estate issues & gaining some perspective on her quick love affair with Hayden. In the three weeks since Tenley left Hayden completely fell apart, feeling like one more person he loves has left him - and it brings back all of his nightmares from the murder scene, this time having Tenley replace his parents. Tenley & Hayden have a lot of pain and suffering to deal with but if they do it together in a productive way it only makes them closer & more solid. There are many ups & downs in this story, and sometimes the heat is from Tenley or Hayden or both of them using sex to forget about their grief for a while, to get completely lost in one another. As they work through destructive coping methods they find their way to healthy ones that are very beautiful. And the resolution of their pasts is very intriguing & interesting - great book & great characters you really grow to love!

Tenley and Hayden are both battling to escape from the demons of their pasts. They are both hiding the intense feelings they have for each other and both are trying not to let fear of losing each other take over. When Tenley returns from Arden Hills she’s managed to grow a little and become stronger, knowing that Hayden is the one she wants to spend the rest of her life with. Hayden has spiralled whilst she’s been away and she now needs to be his anchor! What happens when parts of Hayden’s past, bleed into the present? What happens when new evidence arises from his parents murder? Can they both be the rock they need to survive?This book was tense at times but full of love and cupcakes at others! The characters are strong and realistic. The story itself pulled me in and I hoped they would overcome the problems and the past to create an amazing HEA!

I was beyond frustrated when Tenley left at the end of book 1. Thankfully book 2 starts almost immediately afterwards. Boy, what a rollercoaster again!In this book, Hayden and Tenley finally confront their demons and fight their way back to each other both physically and emotionally.Favourite quote: For me, she would always be the light in my darkness.

Fabulous great read, had everything love laughter tears and trouble. Felt the ending was a bit rushed after seven years his parents killers where brought to justice but that was just one chapter and it could've ended with a wedding or something

Life isn’t fair. It seems that some people fall ass-backwards into good luck, while others are allotted grief upon grief. Such sorrow has followed the main characters of Helena Hunting’s highly anticipated follow up to Clipped Wings entitled Inked Armor.The story picks up with Hayden Stryker and Tenley Page separated and in dual despair. Circumstances beyond her control have taken Tenley to another city, leaving Hayden to fear the possibility of a future without her. Thankfully, the physical gulf between them doesn’t last for long.Their lack of communication and non-existent self-worth are constant undertones both before and after their estrangement, which makes for a heart-wrenching read at times. Their insecurities do not become tedious to the reader, however. Hunting’s distinct voice for each character and her knack for revealing pertinent history at just the right moment provide the reader with insights that lead to sympathy and understanding, rather than judgment. Her use of each character’s individual narration serves to pull the reader fully into the story as a participant, rather than as an observer only.While Inked Armor is at its core a love story, there is also mystery and intrigue within the pages. And, while Tenley and Hayden are the central characters, their circle of friends is just as thought provoking and interesting as they are. Hunting has written a significant cast of characters from beginning to end.While the psychology of Inked Armor is painful at times, the final reveals are of strength and courage and love. The sense of “against all odds” love in Hunting’s latest contribution will keep it on our list of all-time favorites.

Why did I wait so long to read this? I have read all of the lovely Helena Hunting books but this one kept getting put to the bottom, when a new Pucked book came out. Wowza, this is full of angst and is delightfully emotional. A must read.