Depraved Truths

Lake Falls, Book 1

De: Emmy Wade

Narrado por: M. K. Blackwood, Michael Gallagher

Nurse practitioner by day and vigilante killer by night, Tessa Sparks leads a double life as she attempts to escape the haunting nightmares of her past. With each fresh kill and with every vile monster’s death, the peace she so desperately seeks finally comes to her at last.

But that peace only stays for a short while. The steady calm she receives from her kills no longer lasts, and when her personal demons threaten to devour her whole, she makes the mistake of letting her guard down and breaking the one solid rule she has always kept.

Former Navy Seal Elijah Huntington grew up in the sleepy small town that sits on the banks of Lake Lucia. Finally home and busy with his budding construction business, Eli knows one thing for sure when he spots Tessa for the first time. The woman belongs to no one else but him.

However, fighting his own internal battles after his sister's mysterious disappearance, Eli understands that evil can come in many forms, as can vengeance. When Tessa’s depraved truths reveal themselves, everything he thought he understood about good versus evil is turned upside down, forcing him to question the very foundation of right and wrong.

©2025 Chasity Myers (P)2025 Chasity Myers

FMC vigilante yes please

⭐⭐⭐⭐ • Depraved Truths: Lake Falls by Emmy Wade

This book hooked me with its premise — a female vigilante nurse practitioner/Doctor by day, killer by night? Yes please. Tessa Sparks is a standout FMC, and I loved how her story unfolds alongside Eli, the protective MMC, and Allie, her fierce best friend. The three POVs add depth and tension, giving us insight into each character’s emotional landscape and moral gray zones.

If you’re into Dexter-style justice with a sprinkle of Butcher and Blackbird (minus the romcom feel) and a slight touch of Mindfck* Series (minus the graphic detail), this one delivers. It’s a dark romance, but I’d call it “light dark” — the violence is present but not overly explicit, which worked well for me. Definitely check the trigger warnings though; this story doesn’t shy away from heavy themes.

I also really loved the suspense and tension throughout — the mystery of how these characters are solving the central plot kept me engaged. The ending ties up enough to feel satisfying, but still leaves room for more, and I’m excited to see what the rest of the series has in store.

I was gifted the audiobook by the author (thank you!), and I genuinely enjoyed the narration by M.K. Blackwood and Michael Gallagher. Both narrators did a fantastic job narrating these characters.

A gripping, morally complex listen with strong female energy and small-town secrets — I’ll definitely be watching for more from this duo.

Absolutely Love!

This book continues to wow me! I’ve read it and now I’ve listened to it and still it remains a favorite! The MMC’s nickname for the FMC is adorably fitting. Their relationship is meant to be from their backgrounds and I loved that. This is a must read!

FMC VIGILANTE!!!

Tessa leads a double life while she saves lives by day and takes them by night

Elijah becomes Tessas "stalker" is fighting his own demons of trying to find out what happened to his sister years ago.

Tessa and Elijah team up in the most awesome way of hook up, to team up. They both get the answers, and vengeance they are searching for. I love that Tessa is able to get hers against her abuser, while Elijah finally finds out what happened to his sister.

soo good!!

can't wait for the next book in the series! could not stop listening! Seriously how is it not well known yet!

The story starts to fall apart in the middle!!!

Overall the story and the characters are really interesting. Nurse practitioner by day, serial killer by night. The subplot about Eli’s sister is also interesting. It’s when you get to the middle of the book, the story begins to fall apart. I realize that insta-love is a trope, but Tessa and Eli hardly spend any time around one another to instantly fall in love. They run into each other a total of five times before they decide the attraction to each other is to strong to ignore 🙄 This is after Tessa’s home is broken into, still don’t know who did that, and Eli stays the night at her house. This woman doesn’t have relationships or trust easily, but a man she barely knows barges his way into her life and home and he gets a free pass. Oh okay!

Tessa also loses her mind at one point of this book and gets rid a patient under her care at the hospital with the FBI on their way to town. That was just stupid and does track with her MO at all. She normally plans out an attack and doesn’t just execute a person. The ending was just okay. It seemed like a lot of built up for nothing to really happen.