A quiet room in the hills. A spirit that imitates people. Lights in the woods that have no business being there.

Welcome to Brackenlake.

After sixty years chasing the things that aren’t supposed to exist, Maris Rose has decided to retire… more or less. She’s signed away most of her savings for a room at Five Eldar, a nursing home above town, and she’s been promised a soft bed and a quiet few years. Brackenlake, everyone agrees, is due for a calm spell.

Brackenlake has other ideas.

Her first night, Maris learns there’s a curious spirit haunting the home. By morning, she’s taken on a client, a fifty-year-old murder, and a spirit that wears the faces of the people you trust most. And that’s before her old friend Hackerty calls about the trees out in the forest: six of them, half turned to glass overnight.

With a government man who answers nothing, a tinfoil-hatted conspiracy theorist who’s right far more often than he should be, and something moving through the dark that isn’t from anywhere near here, Maris finds herself with two cases, a bad pair of hips, and a gift that’s getting harder to carry every year.

She’s already seen how her own story ends. She made her peace with that a long time ago.

She’d just like to finish the work first.

Titles in the Cordelia Rose Paranormal Mysteries series include:  Cheap Omens (prelude) ~ Strange Tidings ~ Weird Visions ~

This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.

Title:  Cheap Omens
Series:  Cordelia Rose Paranormal Mysteries #Prequel
Author:  Mara Webb
Published:  June 5, 2026
My Rating:  4.5 stars

I, frankly, love a good prequel.  They often set up the series to come in a way that makes it easier to fall into the first story of that new series… which is exactly what happened for me with Cheap Omens, the prequel to the Cordelia Rose Paranormal Mysteries series.  I’ve read Mara Webb’s work for years, and I’ve never been disappointed by any of her books.  I am really looking forward to this new series.  

Cheap Omens is a quick read, so much so that I don’t intend to say too much about it for fear of unintentional spoilers, and beyond the fact that it drew me into this new world so easily, with enough of a hook to encourage me to continue the series.  Maris is a delight; her unique talent is intriguing, and her co-investigators in these two mysterious happenings are funny and witty, helping keep me engaged in the story.  Cheap Omens is well-written (which I expect from this author), engaging, mysterious, with a few chuckles and surprises along the way.  I fully intend to follow this series since now I need to know what happens next when… well, you’ll see.  If you love a good Paranormal Cozy Mystery or getting the chance to read the story before the main event story (otherwise known as a prequel), then you’re going to enjoy this one.

*I received an e-ARC of this novel from the author or the author’s team via Booksprout, and I sincerely thank them for their trust. It is my choice to leave a review giving my personal opinion about this book.*  (I also purchased a copy for my personal collection.)

This title is available at Amazon