Inked Armor (Clipped Wings #2) – Helena Hunting

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18344535-inked-armor

 

2 out of 5 stars

 

“Please don’t leave me. Not again. Please. It hurts too much to be without you. I don’t know how.”

Inked Armor is everything that I disliked in the previous book, Clipped Wings. My connection to the characters was still limited, however it grew slightly by the end of Inked Armor but not enough to make me truly care about their outcomes.

What I truly hated about these books is the characters’ coping mechanisms. Using aggressive sex to avoid talking about feelings and overcoming emotional issues is all the characters do, especially Hayden. This coping mechanism then creates some serious insecurities and relationship issues. Hayden and Tenley’s relationship isn’t what I would call healthy, although I’ve read unhealthier relationships. I also wouldn’t rate a book negatively because the relationship featured isn’t healthy. Unhealthy relationships exist in real life and most healthy relationships have some unhealthy aspects. So, what ultimately made me dislike these characters together was their lack of growth as individuals and as a couple. Their unhealthy habits are what prohibit this growth making their relationship difficult to enjoy reading about.

Overall, Tenley and Hayden’s story is not a romance that I enjoyed. The characters are devoid of any personal and emotional growth and rely heavily on unhealthy coping mechanism to deal with their very traumatic pasts. There isn’t much to be gained from their relationship, other than sitting through two insecure individuals dealing with their personal problems that affect their relationships.