Fractures in Ink

By: Helena Hunting

Narrated by: Rose Dioro, Jacob Morgan

Sometimes the things we shouldn't want become exactly what we need.

Waitressing at a seedy strip club isn't ideal, but it pays Sarah Adamson's tuition. Her goal is to finish her master's program and get a job that doesn't involve tight skirts and groping hands. She doesn't need distractions. Especially not the one that comes in the form of a hot-as-sin tattoo artist who works across the street from her apartment.

Kicked out at 16, and a high school dropout, Chris Zelter is familiar with wanting things he can't have. His fractured life has never been easy. As the product of someone else's bad decisions, he knows exactly what happens when the wrong person controls your marionette strings. Now an accomplished tattoo artist in a renowned studio in Chicago, Chris has it together.

Mostly.

Apart from his infatuation with Sarah. She's way out of his league, and Chris knows it.

But he's willing to be her bad decision. At least for now.

©2016 Helena Hunting (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

soon good

I loved Chris's story. I hope ivy is next. please read and review your books

Gripping story, weak female narrator

I listened to this story in a whim, not realizing it was technically part of a series. I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Although it was dark and the characters were troubled, it wasn’t nearly as annoyingly angsty as stories like this often get.

I also absolutely love Jacob Morgan as a narrator. He’s one of my favorite voices and his name listed as a narrator was part of the reason I listen to the book.

The only real downside was Rose Diorio. This isn’t the first time I’ve heard her, but I’d forgotten how irritating I found her voice. I ended up speeding through her chapters as quickly as I could without missing important plot points just to get through the book.

My Two Pennies

Narration wise was wonderful, I enjoyed the variety of the characters and the emotions portrayed from each. Story wise 3.7 I haven’t read the previous books and it’s not necessary because this is a standalone within the series. We’re given a story filled with heartache from both main characters as see as they find their strength and find each other through it all. There were moments that pulled me in but unfortunately more often then not I wasn’t as focused on their story as I thought I’d be, I didn’t feel that desire to jump right back in aching to know more. Overall it is a beautifully broken story with a HEA and I am happy I read through the end.

Darker than I realized.

This was my first book by this author. It was a little darker than I was expecting. Still well written. The male narration was amazing. The female seemed a little whiny. I’m still going to try a different series by this author. It’s all personal preference. If you like dark romance then you will want to give this a listen.

Excellent narration, excellent story

This story required superb (understated) acting from the narrators. Jacob Morgan especially did an amazing job. It added to the power of the narrative. Helena Hunting seems to really understand fractured childhoods and writes convincingly. I’ll be looking for another book in this series. Worth a credit!

Not what I expected

The narrators were very good. The story was ok. I have extremely high expectations of this author after reading the Pucked (phenomenal). I was looking for more fun, engaging, endearing characters. Helena Hunting writes amazing characters and is able to tell stories that you immerse yourself in. I can listen to/read the Pucked series over and over again and be entertained. This book was a one and done for me.

Ok story line

The story is ok if it’s on sale it’s worth it. First anything with Jacob Morgan sign me up! The female narrator I had a hard time getting through though and this made it less enjoyable. The story kind of did a back and forth thing getting nowhere exactly then ended kind of lackluster but it was overall an enjoyable story and worth it but I would say buy it on sale don’t waste a credit

Two damaged people learning to trust

Chris was such a complex character, sweet yet tough and he carried the burden for so many people. He was so sweet with Sara in a swoony but realistic way. He didn't just jump in and fix everything, he listened and championed. He described himself as a reformed loser of sorts, having a troubled childhood where he caused a lot of turmoil in his home but he was trying to create a better life for himself. Even helping his mom, who in the end had to come to terms with her own misfortune. I loved how he was protective of his sister and enabling her to have a better life without just swooping in and saving her. Some people have to save themselves by making the right choices.

Sara was an interesting character, very smart but getting herself into a situation that could cost her everything. She didn't want to be another burden on Chris but realized that she couldn't hide things from him either. The mess she got herself into with Xander tidied itself up in the end a little too easily though. I kept waiting for something dramatic to happen, and it did, just not in the way I thought.

Overall, it was a great audiobook with deep characters that were real and raw. Totally recommend.

ehhhh

the story was ok... rather slow moving... i️ think the narrators “saves” it for me honestly... the story had potential to be so much more than average

Complicated relationships!

The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙❤️💚💜
Steam: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙
World building: 🌏🌍🌏🌎
Character development: 😕😊😄😘
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Type: Dual Narration

The heroine: Sarah - she is going to college to get her MBA and is nearly finished. She has worked her way through college working at a few seedy strip clubs as a waitress and she doesn’t like it but doesn’t have a choice. Currently she owes her boss money and a favor and she is really worried about what he is going to ask her for. She thinks the favor might be dancing on the pole or even serving tables on the left side of the stage, which is basically where the customer know that anything goes, even with the waitresses.

The Hero: Chris - he never finished high school; he comes from a bad background. His mother was never stable, and she married the father of her younger sister who is pretty much a deadbeat. He was kicked out in his teens and wasn’t in the best situation until he got into tattooing. He now works at an up-and-coming tattoo shop and is a known tattoo artist.

The Story: Chris has had it bad for Sarah for quite some time and though they have a romantic relationship, he thinks she is going places and is too good for him. She lives in the apartment above the café across the street from the tattoo shop where he works. He knows she works at a strip club while finishing her degree and worries about her while she is at work. Never more so than after she suddenly breaks up with him and doesn’t answer his calls or texts.

Helena Hunting is one of my favorite writers. She is one of those people who write complicated relationships very well. There are plenty of side storylines, but the main story is about the interactions and the love growing between these two realistic people. She puts plenty of emotion into her stories and you can definitely feel the tension between Sarah and her boss. You feel for Chris who dated another girl in his past who worked at a strip club and ended up on drugs and prostituting herself. You also feel what a great guy Chris is, especially in how he treats Sarah and how he helps out his younger sister.

This audiobook was told in dual points of view via dual narration and was narrated by Rose Dioro and Jacob Morgan. I really like both of these narrators and they did a great job with this audiobook. Rose had a soft, youthful sounding voice that is very pleasant. Jacob Morgan has a very genuine voice which sounds like a good friend you would like to have. This was a good one.