Review: Marla

Marla by Jonathan Janz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Jonathan Janz makes a bold decision to begin Marla with quotes from two classic stories by two giants of horror: Carrie by Stephen King and We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. If those quotes were meant to be aspirational, with hopes that MARLA would live up to those other tales, Janz, without question, succeeded.

Residents of King's Branch have long wondered about Marla Gorman and her mother Irene, who live by themselves on the outskirts of town. Rumors abound about the pair, and especially about Marla, who is rarely, if ever, seen by the people of the town. No one seems to know much about them for certain, and the Gormans rebuff all attempts to pry into their secrets.

When a number of unusual deaths occur in town, with victims that seem to have nothing in common other than a look of terror on their faces, Detectives Carl Lancaster and RJ Williams are assigned to investigate. With only vague, but disturbing suspicions that the deaths might be connected to the Gormans, Lancaster and Williams turn their attention to the pair, only to find much less, and far more, than they expected. And they realize that identifying the likely killer is one thing, surviving long enough to do anything about it is something else entirely.

Janz builds this ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ story like a multi-layer dessert, first spreading a base of uneasy suspicion, adding a large helping of fear, and then topping it all with a layer of absolute terror. As you sink your teeth into it, be warned that this is one of those rare stories that also sinks its teeth into you... and it doesn't let go, even after the last spoonful is consumed as the last page is turned.

Buy it (I did). Read it. Thank me later.

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing for providing an eARC for review!

Updated: August 23, 2026

I received my hardcover and it is absolutely GORGEOUS! As a bonus, it includes a prequel story, Moonflowers, also set in Kings Branch.

Private investigator Gus Anderson is in Kings Branch to try to learn what may have led to the suicide of a local teen. As he investigates, the things he discovers convince him to take a close look at the Gorman house on the outskirts of town. There he learns some nightmares are real, and will take root in your mind. 

Although it is a prequel set 11 years before the events of Marla, I suggest reading Moonflowers only after you're finished Marla, to avoid possible slight spoilers.