Bad Things - Mike Marhsall (horror, mystery/thriller)

John and Carole Henderson live separate lives as they attempt to move on following the drowning death of their young son Scott. Carole tries to give a sense of normalcy to their surviving child Tyler, while the once successful John is now a recovering alcoholic spinning his wheels working at a local Italian restaurant. When John receives an anonymous email suggesting that Scott's death was not an accident, John returns to the small town where his son died in an attempt to find the truth.

John's efforts are thwarted by local law enforcement and members of a tightly knit community who do not want their dirty laundry to be aired. John realizes that his former neighbors are hiding something, but as an outsider he has no way of knowing that he is dealing with supernatural forces outside of his power to control.

Mark Marshall's novel begs comparison to the best works of Stephen King, in that the story relies on other-worldly powers yet is genuinely scary in places and not the least bit cheesy. The dark tone of the book reminds me of Gillian Flynn's "Sharp Objects," but the descriptions of John's struggles and mourning are worthy of literary fiction - Marshall's book works because his characters and locations are so believable. "Bad Things" is a welcome change of pace from mindless horror/suspense novels.
Bad Things: A Novel - Amazon info page