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Psychosomatic
Because Lydia didn't have arms or legs, she shelled out three thousand bucks to a washed up middleweight named Cap to give her ex-husband the beating of his life. But the beating turns to murder, and the murder into lust and desperation between Lydia and an underworld clean-up man. Meanwhile, overgrown frat boy car thieves take up cop killing as a side hobby. When these paths cross, a horror show of violence unfolds as they all slide into a hell of their own design, surrounded by the neon and noise of the casino strip on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Violent, vivid, life at hyper-speed. This debut novel from the editor of Plots with Guns is a noir nightmare that asks how much is too much in a relationship, and what is the cost of leaving? Ken Bruen calls it the darkest song I've ever read.
180 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2005
12 people are currently reading
265 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Neil Smith
63 books191 followersI write crime novels. PSYCHOSOMATIC, THE DRUMMER, plus the Billy Lafitte series--YELLOW MEDICINE, HOGDOGGIN', THE BADDEST ASS, and HOLY DEATH--and the Mustafa & Adem series--ALL THE YOUNG WARRIORS and ONCE A WARRIOR, in addition to WORM, CHOKE ON YOUR LIES, and the SLOW BEAR trilogy.
I'm an English Professor at Southwest Minnesota State University, and editor of the online lit mag Revolution John.
I'm an English Professor at Southwest Minnesota State University, and editor of the online lit mag Revolution John.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 12, 2015
I bought this on kindle awhile back. Recently made free on kindle reminded me it was buried somewhere on my kindle. I was intrigued from the start of the synopsis.
Henchmen hired to off a women's husband. The women being an amputee is literally stuck in the middle of this murder plot.
The novel didn't hold my interest the first two chapters had me wanting more. At 55% I feel lost. Mr. Smith has other titles that sound very interesting that I plan checking out in the future.
Henchmen hired to off a women's husband. The women being an amputee is literally stuck in the middle of this murder plot.
The novel didn't hold my interest the first two chapters had me wanting more. At 55% I feel lost. Mr. Smith has other titles that sound very interesting that I plan checking out in the future.
January 24, 2012
A few days ago the author of Psychosomatic, Anthony Neil Smith, made downloads of the kindle version of his book free for 48 hours on Amazon.com. Since I’m always looking for new things to review at the HQ, and since “free” is always a bonus point, I snatched up the electronic version of his book (first published in 1995). I finished reading it last night and all I can say is: “Wow”.
I don’t think I’ve ridden a literary roller coaster of this magnitude since I jacked into a Joe Lansdale novel twenty years ago. What can you say to any book which begins with:
“Because Lydia didn’t have arms or legs, she shelled out three thousand bucks to a washed-up middleweight named Cap to give her ex-husband the beating of his life.”
I just kept on reading and wondered when I could get off the ride.
Everything we need to know about Psychosomatic is contained in the first sentence. It opens with quadriplegic Lydia paying the boxer to beat-up her ex. But the shake-down goes bust when the boxer accidentally kills him. All of which is captured on a cheap video camera by a loser named Alan Crabtree, a wasted gambler and small fixer for southern fried mobsters. Crabtree makes the mistake of his worthless life by taking the video to Lydia and showing her the tragic results. Lydia decides he’s just what she ordered and starts molding him into the master criminal she desires. And things just get worse from there on.
The action isn’t merely confined to Alan Crabtree and Lydia. The author tosses in a pair of car thieves who resemble frat boys, Terry and Lancaster. Terry is smooth and can talk his way out of any situation. Lancaster uses brute force whenever the need arises. They are introduced into the story via a Monte Carlo sedan Crabtree buys from the duo. Together they travel up and down the highway looking for abandoned cars to steal. But suddenly Lancaster has an epiphany and turns into a psycho killer.
I will say the author writes movingly about the New South ( I think we are on the 8th or 9th one). The criminals travel through a landscape of convenience stores and backwoods dead ends. He hails from this area, so he writes with conviction:
“This part of town was crowded with chain restaurants, motels, small businesses falling apart from the signs to the paint jobs to the bad parking lots, lot of troublemaking kids out wandering the streets trying to look like gang members even though the kids were scared of the real thing if they were to see them. It wasn’t touristy New Orleans, the sprawling underclass suburbs, sinking into the Gulf of Mexico at the same rate as the rest of the city.”
And this novel is firmly in Jim Thompson territory: there’s hardly a sympathetic character among them. None of the characters are admirable, just pathetic. They’ve made their choices in life and taken it in the jaw. But there isn’t much escape from this nightmare alley.The book also has one of the most gruesome rape scenes I’ve ever encountered. It’ll stay with me for a long time (which I suspect was the intent). The novel ends with a gruesome conclusion where the guilty get paid in heaps. Not for those with tender feelings.
Psychosomatic is a book of revenge, escape, and criminal minds. Read it at your own risk.
I don’t think I’ve ridden a literary roller coaster of this magnitude since I jacked into a Joe Lansdale novel twenty years ago. What can you say to any book which begins with:
“Because Lydia didn’t have arms or legs, she shelled out three thousand bucks to a washed-up middleweight named Cap to give her ex-husband the beating of his life.”
I just kept on reading and wondered when I could get off the ride.
Everything we need to know about Psychosomatic is contained in the first sentence. It opens with quadriplegic Lydia paying the boxer to beat-up her ex. But the shake-down goes bust when the boxer accidentally kills him. All of which is captured on a cheap video camera by a loser named Alan Crabtree, a wasted gambler and small fixer for southern fried mobsters. Crabtree makes the mistake of his worthless life by taking the video to Lydia and showing her the tragic results. Lydia decides he’s just what she ordered and starts molding him into the master criminal she desires. And things just get worse from there on.
The action isn’t merely confined to Alan Crabtree and Lydia. The author tosses in a pair of car thieves who resemble frat boys, Terry and Lancaster. Terry is smooth and can talk his way out of any situation. Lancaster uses brute force whenever the need arises. They are introduced into the story via a Monte Carlo sedan Crabtree buys from the duo. Together they travel up and down the highway looking for abandoned cars to steal. But suddenly Lancaster has an epiphany and turns into a psycho killer.
I will say the author writes movingly about the New South ( I think we are on the 8th or 9th one). The criminals travel through a landscape of convenience stores and backwoods dead ends. He hails from this area, so he writes with conviction:
“This part of town was crowded with chain restaurants, motels, small businesses falling apart from the signs to the paint jobs to the bad parking lots, lot of troublemaking kids out wandering the streets trying to look like gang members even though the kids were scared of the real thing if they were to see them. It wasn’t touristy New Orleans, the sprawling underclass suburbs, sinking into the Gulf of Mexico at the same rate as the rest of the city.”
And this novel is firmly in Jim Thompson territory: there’s hardly a sympathetic character among them. None of the characters are admirable, just pathetic. They’ve made their choices in life and taken it in the jaw. But there isn’t much escape from this nightmare alley.The book also has one of the most gruesome rape scenes I’ve ever encountered. It’ll stay with me for a long time (which I suspect was the intent). The novel ends with a gruesome conclusion where the guilty get paid in heaps. Not for those with tender feelings.
Psychosomatic is a book of revenge, escape, and criminal minds. Read it at your own risk.
March 25, 2012
I was attracted to this book initially, because it was a free download from Amazon.com. Because of my experience with other such books before and since, I know that this alone is not a good reason to acquire a book. But, Dr. Smith's story is not rife with all the typos and errors that infest most amazon freebies. That might be because it was originally released in 1995 and was likely proofread and edited then. Anyway, the book is a fun ride, if you don't mind some overkill (emphasis on the "kill"). Many very nasty things happen in this story -- if you don't like hardcore crime fiction, then this is not for you. However, Psychosomatic has one of the most intriguing openings I've ever read.
"Because Lydia didn’t have arms or legs, she shelled out three thousand bucks to a washed-up middleweight named Cap to give her ex-husband the beating of his life."
How could you not keep reading after that sentence? I don't like to go into story details in these reviews but several very low-level criminals get involved with helping Lydia, after the initial plan described there goes incredibly awry. If you like Westlake, Leonard, and the like, you'll probably enjoy Psychosomatic.
"Because Lydia didn’t have arms or legs, she shelled out three thousand bucks to a washed-up middleweight named Cap to give her ex-husband the beating of his life."
How could you not keep reading after that sentence? I don't like to go into story details in these reviews but several very low-level criminals get involved with helping Lydia, after the initial plan described there goes incredibly awry. If you like Westlake, Leonard, and the like, you'll probably enjoy Psychosomatic.
May 30, 2012
That was an absolute nutter. Loved it, especially the painful airport ending that happens over a few chapters, but seem to last forever for the characters. Not up to par with the Billy Lafitte Saga (Billy's quite special), but very good nonetheless. You can see the seed of what will become Octavia VanderPlaats in his Smith's heroin Lydia. She's fairly different, but you can see the beginning of the idea there.
February 21, 2023
A brutal noir that pits many parties against each other as they try to finagle the greatest advantage for themselves.
July 5, 2024
I dunno. How many times in one story should a guy have some sort of vehicle ram him?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 16, 2011
Anthony Neil Smith’s debut novel Psychosomatic was released earlier this year for Kindle and what a debut it was.
The book has a plot that drives forward like a tank with broken steering, crushing everything in its path. It has great dialogue and the interplay between characters really sparkles.
As a starting point, we come across Lydia, a foxy lady with no arms and no legs. She wants to gain revenge on her husband for having sex with a younger woman in front of her. It’s not the unfaithfulness which upset her, rather the fact that they turned her on and left her without satisfying her needs. She employs the local thug, Cap, to beat up her husband, but he finds out about it and turns to Alan Crabtree, a small time crook, to film the fake beating he’s managed to organise.
During the fake beating the camera rolls, Cap takes things to far and kills Lydia’s husband. While they clean things up, Crabtree kills Cap during a moment of madness and then returns to Lydia to explain.
Unfortunately for Crabtree he’s in a tough spot with Terry and Lancaster, the car thieves from whom he bought his car. Lydia offers him a way out and at the same time manages to take over his body and mind.
This is only the beginning.
What happens next is a fizzing plot, driven by the needs of this crazy bunch of characters Smith sets against each other.
There’s planing and counter-planning, guessing and second-guessing and ignoring every bit of logic they’re capable of.
Crabtree and Lancaster become crazed killers, Terry and Lydia pulling at the stings with all their might. They head to the airport for a final showdown and I guarantee that you’ll get a buzz from the way it all plays out.
To my mind it’s as if Smith has taken the main characters, thrown them in a blender and pressed the button for a minute. He’s opened the lid, added a beautiful woman dressed as a nurse and pressed the button for another while.
The lives of these people may be chaos, but the writer never loses control. He’s always there as an invisible hand crafting the scenes and the dialogue to make sure there’s not an ounce of fat left to trim.
Fast-paced, stylish and brutal, it’s an absolute must for any fans of crime-fiction.
An absolutely ridiculous bargain at 69p.
Warning: This book with have your Kindle smoking – do not throw water over it after downloading.
The book has a plot that drives forward like a tank with broken steering, crushing everything in its path. It has great dialogue and the interplay between characters really sparkles.
As a starting point, we come across Lydia, a foxy lady with no arms and no legs. She wants to gain revenge on her husband for having sex with a younger woman in front of her. It’s not the unfaithfulness which upset her, rather the fact that they turned her on and left her without satisfying her needs. She employs the local thug, Cap, to beat up her husband, but he finds out about it and turns to Alan Crabtree, a small time crook, to film the fake beating he’s managed to organise.
During the fake beating the camera rolls, Cap takes things to far and kills Lydia’s husband. While they clean things up, Crabtree kills Cap during a moment of madness and then returns to Lydia to explain.
Unfortunately for Crabtree he’s in a tough spot with Terry and Lancaster, the car thieves from whom he bought his car. Lydia offers him a way out and at the same time manages to take over his body and mind.
This is only the beginning.
What happens next is a fizzing plot, driven by the needs of this crazy bunch of characters Smith sets against each other.
There’s planing and counter-planning, guessing and second-guessing and ignoring every bit of logic they’re capable of.
Crabtree and Lancaster become crazed killers, Terry and Lydia pulling at the stings with all their might. They head to the airport for a final showdown and I guarantee that you’ll get a buzz from the way it all plays out.
To my mind it’s as if Smith has taken the main characters, thrown them in a blender and pressed the button for a minute. He’s opened the lid, added a beautiful woman dressed as a nurse and pressed the button for another while.
The lives of these people may be chaos, but the writer never loses control. He’s always there as an invisible hand crafting the scenes and the dialogue to make sure there’s not an ounce of fat left to trim.
Fast-paced, stylish and brutal, it’s an absolute must for any fans of crime-fiction.
An absolutely ridiculous bargain at 69p.
Warning: This book with have your Kindle smoking – do not throw water over it after downloading.
March 5, 2018
Lydia is the ex-wife of a rich drug dealer who lost all her limbs in a car crash, Alan is a small-time criminal doing odd jobs to get by, Terry and Lancaster are a pair of fratty extortionists and car thieves, Norm is a drug dealer looking to muscle his partner out of the picture, and Megan is a thief who disguises herself as a nurse to steal drugs from a hospital. Their various schemes bring them crashing together in a way that leaves a lot of bodies and destruction behind.
Psychosomatic was Anthony Neil Smith's first novel, but it certainly doesn't feel like it. It's masterfully plotted, keeps moving at a fast pace, and never feels bogged down despite the number of characters. The characters are also repellent and yet compelling enough that I didn't want to put the book down.
I had previously read one of Smith's later novels, XXX Shamus, which he wrote under the pen name of Red Hammond. I'm curious why he felt that one needed to be under a pen name when this is what he writes under his real name. I found many parts of Psychosomatic much darker and more fucked up than XXX Shamus, the ending especially.
If you like dark neo-noir stories, this is a must-read.
Psychosomatic was Anthony Neil Smith's first novel, but it certainly doesn't feel like it. It's masterfully plotted, keeps moving at a fast pace, and never feels bogged down despite the number of characters. The characters are also repellent and yet compelling enough that I didn't want to put the book down.
I had previously read one of Smith's later novels, XXX Shamus, which he wrote under the pen name of Red Hammond. I'm curious why he felt that one needed to be under a pen name when this is what he writes under his real name. I found many parts of Psychosomatic much darker and more fucked up than XXX Shamus, the ending especially.
If you like dark neo-noir stories, this is a must-read.
March 1, 2012
Meet Lydia. She lost her arms and legs in a car crash. She likes to be in control. She is divorced but her ex-husband brings girls to her house and does the nasty with them in front of her. So she decides to teach him a lesson and hires a guy to beat him up.
Meet Alan. He's a bit of a loser and he owes money to a couple of villains called Terry and Lancaster. Lydia's ex-husband is onto her plan and hires Alan to film the fight, which is being staged for Lydia's benefit. When the ex-husband dies in the fight, Alan has to get the money from Lydia. They become lovers and business partners, but when they cross paths again with Terry and an increasingly deranged Lancaster, a battle to the death ensues...
Anthony Neil Smith's debut novel is a dark and twisted ride through the lives (and deaths) of a bunch of people you hope never meet. It's fast paced, violent, funny, sometimes disturbing and written with enough style for you to forgive the occasional slightly far-fetched plot twist.
I'll be reading more of his work.
Meet Alan. He's a bit of a loser and he owes money to a couple of villains called Terry and Lancaster. Lydia's ex-husband is onto her plan and hires Alan to film the fight, which is being staged for Lydia's benefit. When the ex-husband dies in the fight, Alan has to get the money from Lydia. They become lovers and business partners, but when they cross paths again with Terry and an increasingly deranged Lancaster, a battle to the death ensues...
Anthony Neil Smith's debut novel is a dark and twisted ride through the lives (and deaths) of a bunch of people you hope never meet. It's fast paced, violent, funny, sometimes disturbing and written with enough style for you to forgive the occasional slightly far-fetched plot twist.
I'll be reading more of his work.
February 13, 2012
How can a woman with no arms or legs be at the center of all this mayhem? Read and find out. Other reviewers have called for a this to be made into a movie and I can only agree. This has enough suspense, mystery and guns to be a Tarantino film.
It is an intense story from start to finish. It peels back the curtain into the hearts of the foulest criminals. These people do awful terrible things that will disgust and repel you. You will ask yourself, "can people trully be that evil?"
The only answer is yes. And people who live these kind of violent lives can hope for a happy ending. But we all know that's not going to happen. But that doesn't stop them from trying and nothing is going to stop you from reading to the bitter end.
You will be shocked and saddened but glad you read it.
It is an intense story from start to finish. It peels back the curtain into the hearts of the foulest criminals. These people do awful terrible things that will disgust and repel you. You will ask yourself, "can people trully be that evil?"
The only answer is yes. And people who live these kind of violent lives can hope for a happy ending. But we all know that's not going to happen. But that doesn't stop them from trying and nothing is going to stop you from reading to the bitter end.
You will be shocked and saddened but glad you read it.
August 3, 2012
The story rattles along at a fair speed to start with and because there were so many characters introduced early in the story I had to go back and re-read parts to remember who they all were. A previous reviewers have already mentioned it reads like a Tarantino or Coen Brothers film script as its filled with lots of strange characters, none of them very nice and a high body count. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and only gave it three stars as i was a bit disappointed by the ending.
Will definitely seek out and read more of Smith's books as this is only his debut novel.
Will definitely seek out and read more of Smith's books as this is only his debut novel.
March 8, 2013
Violent screwball mayhem featuring a collection of increasingly murderous small-time crims and losers. It's like a Coen brothers film without enough laughs to leaven the grim desperation and downright terrible choices exercised by the uniformly unlikeable characters. This is normally the sort of thing I like in a crime thriller, and it is a well-paced, easy read but the lack of balancing humour takes all the fun out of it, and its too difficult to invest in the complete pack of jerks populating this book. Smith's later books are all better than this early, okay effort.
June 12, 2012
Smith's first novel is a demented, occasionally grotesque piece of art about a fat, cowardly fringe criminal named Alan Crabtree, his own personal femme fatale, quadruple amputee Lydia, two sleazy small time criminals named Terry and Lancaster propelled suddenly into the big time of murder and rape, and a handful of other equally compelling characters. It's a remarkably labyrinthine plot that all comes together seamlessly at the end.
February 13, 2013
What a cast of characters. Not a protagonist in the bunch. Very fast paced story that I found it to be like a grotesque accident that I couldn't look away from. Can't wait to read another one of his novels.
February 2, 2009
I don't read a lot of crime fiction, but this one was quite a page turner. At times I felt like I was watching a Coen Brothers movie.
September 2, 2016
This book is itching to be made into a Quentin Tarantino film for sure. I can't believe how well Smith writes such twisted crime dramas. Or how much I like them.
February 12, 2015
Nice, entertaining book. Good plot. Thrilling. Really liked it.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews