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Surrounded By Bastards
"Bryan Smith is one of the most reliable and consistently entertaining writers working in the horror and suspense genres."--Ray Garton, author of Live Girls Chase Sinclair has it all. As the heir to a great family fortune, he’s never worked a day in his life. His days are an endless indulgence in booze, babes, and whatever else catches his fancy. There’s nothing that isn't his for the taking. But Chase’s charmed life is about to hit a roadblock in the form of the Russian mob. What happens next is a full-throttle, twist-filled bloody ride into darkness as past transgressions come back to haunt him. With his life on the line and no one else to count on, Chase will have to get his hands dirty to get that charmed existence back.
- GenresHorror
254 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 30, 2015
9 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
About the author
Bryan Smith
105 books765 followersBryan Smith is the Splatterpunk Award-winning author of more than forty horror and crime books, including 68 Kill, the cult classic Depraved and its sequels, as well as The Killing Kind, Slowly We Rot, The Freakshow, and many more. Bestselling horror author Brian Keene called Slowly We Rot, "The best zombie novel I've ever read."
68 Kill was adapted into a motion picture directed by Trent Haaga and starring Matthew Gray Gubler of the long-running CBS series Criminal Minds. 68 Kill won the Midnighters Award at the SXSW film festival in 2017 and was released to wide acclaim, including positive reviews in The New York Times and Bloody Disgusting.
Bryan also co-scripted an original Harley Quinn story for the House of Horrors anthology from DC Comics. He has worked with renowned horror publishers in both the mass market and small press spheres, including Leisure Books, Samhain Publishing, Grindhouse Press, Death’s Head Press, and more. His works are available wherever books are sold, with select titles also available in German and Italian.
68 Kill was adapted into a motion picture directed by Trent Haaga and starring Matthew Gray Gubler of the long-running CBS series Criminal Minds. 68 Kill won the Midnighters Award at the SXSW film festival in 2017 and was released to wide acclaim, including positive reviews in The New York Times and Bloody Disgusting.
Bryan also co-scripted an original Harley Quinn story for the House of Horrors anthology from DC Comics. He has worked with renowned horror publishers in both the mass market and small press spheres, including Leisure Books, Samhain Publishing, Grindhouse Press, Death’s Head Press, and more. His works are available wherever books are sold, with select titles also available in German and Italian.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 12, 2015
Smith veers away from horror to write a crime novel. To tell you the truth, I couldn't really tell the difference. In his horror novels, there's always a bunch of crazy fucked up shit that happens. In this novel, there's a bunch of crazy fucked up shit that happens. It may have technically been another genre, but it was still 100% Bryan Smith. His fans won't be disappointed.
No supernatural element. That's pretty much the only difference between this and his other works. I enjoyed the hell out of it. Recommended.
No supernatural element. That's pretty much the only difference between this and his other works. I enjoyed the hell out of it. Recommended.
July 16, 2015
This is copy 51 of 61 printed signed numbered editions
This is book number 6 in Bryan Smith’s Bitter Ale Series from Thunderstorm Books.
This is book number 6 in Bryan Smith’s Bitter Ale Series from Thunderstorm Books.
May 13, 2015
Murder and Mayhem. With perhaps some June-hem (there is enough to cover a couple of months worth) also included as only Bryan Smith can tell it.
We are told a highly improbable story of a rich guy with uncontrollable hormones and a passion for over drinking who gets himself into a jam with a group Russian extortionists. The man has more lives then a couple of cats. Smith's story telling, with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek, leads us through the ups and mostly downs of encounters with combative neighbors, ex-CIA agents, beautiful women, and enough of death to fill the pages of a book.
A fun and fast read that pushes the boundaries of what could be going on right next door to you, if you lived in Tennessee's better neighborhoods.
We are told a highly improbable story of a rich guy with uncontrollable hormones and a passion for over drinking who gets himself into a jam with a group Russian extortionists. The man has more lives then a couple of cats. Smith's story telling, with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek, leads us through the ups and mostly downs of encounters with combative neighbors, ex-CIA agents, beautiful women, and enough of death to fill the pages of a book.
A fun and fast read that pushes the boundaries of what could be going on right next door to you, if you lived in Tennessee's better neighborhoods.
May 6, 2015
Whenever a hot lady is described in a Bryan Smith novel, I think "Oh no." In the Smithverse, they always mean trouble. Surrounded By Bastards is no exception, as our protagonist Chase is led by his nether regions in to a trap by a sultry waitress he is pursuing. The results of Chase's ill-advised pursuit of Sonia get more complicated and dangerous as the novel continues.
Bryan Smith writes the best femme fatales of the modern era. They are sexy, seductive, and dangerous (if not psychotic). The way he writes them the reader can understand the power they have over the males in the story and why men are led to take actions that are illogical and perilous. This latest novel is a perfect example of what I am talking about. For a fun thriller full of gun toting criminals and sexy ladies you can't go wrong with Surrounded By Bastards. 5 stars.
Bryan Smith writes the best femme fatales of the modern era. They are sexy, seductive, and dangerous (if not psychotic). The way he writes them the reader can understand the power they have over the males in the story and why men are led to take actions that are illogical and perilous. This latest novel is a perfect example of what I am talking about. For a fun thriller full of gun toting criminals and sexy ladies you can't go wrong with Surrounded By Bastards. 5 stars.
May 14, 2015
What a ride!
High octane read. Chase is a man who has it all then his world is turned upside down. Every step he takes he get in deeper and deeper.
High octane read. Chase is a man who has it all then his world is turned upside down. Every step he takes he get in deeper and deeper.
June 27, 2015
A dark,but humorous crime novel from one of my favorite horror novelists.
June 14, 2017
A quick. fun blast of a modern pulp novel. It isn't Great, of course, but I don't think Smith was aiming for Greatness here. Its a very suspenseful, very enjoyable, mayhem filled ride. The last half of the book screams by, I read it in one sitting. Again, its no masterpiece, but as an action packed thriller with no pretense, it does what it sets out to do quite well. The literary equivalent of late night B Movie that keeps you watching way too late after you've had a couple too many drinks.
May 22, 2017
Violent and raunchy to the max. Also quite funny. Veers toward the cartoonish at times, though. Call it 3 1/2.
June 19, 2017
Cool title. Not much else going on though. Just too much suspension of disbelief required. I was expecting something a bit smarter like a Parker story. Oh well, it was only a buck fifty.
January 20, 2019
Chase Sinclair a rich guy is forced by the Russian mob to withdraw money. Quick read but should have called the police from the start.
February 4, 2026
Surrounded by Bastards
A blood-soaked mess fest—mean that in the best possible way.
Bryan Smith doesn’t pull punches; he grinds his knuckles in. Surrounded by Bastards comes out swinging, a brutal cocktail of greed, bad decisions, and bodies hitting the floor. It’s crime fiction stripped to the bone—fast, filthy, and unapologetically savage.
Smith writes like he’s got brass knuckles on his keyboard. Every chapter lands harder than the last, leaving you wincing, laughing, and muttering, “Thank you, sir—may I have another?”
There’s no polish here, no redemption arc, no quiet fade-out. Just blood, sweat, and payback served at gunpoint.
Final verdict: **** — A feral, full-throttle brawler of a book. Smith proves once again that sometimes pulp can still draw blood.
A blood-soaked mess fest—mean that in the best possible way.
Bryan Smith doesn’t pull punches; he grinds his knuckles in. Surrounded by Bastards comes out swinging, a brutal cocktail of greed, bad decisions, and bodies hitting the floor. It’s crime fiction stripped to the bone—fast, filthy, and unapologetically savage.
Smith writes like he’s got brass knuckles on his keyboard. Every chapter lands harder than the last, leaving you wincing, laughing, and muttering, “Thank you, sir—may I have another?”
There’s no polish here, no redemption arc, no quiet fade-out. Just blood, sweat, and payback served at gunpoint.
Final verdict: **** — A feral, full-throttle brawler of a book. Smith proves once again that sometimes pulp can still draw blood.
April 13, 2016
Boom goes the dynamite!
This is the third book I've read by Mr. Smith and certainly won't be the last. It's a great page turner that crackles with energy and plenty of violence. I didn't enjoy it as much as his other novels (Depraved and 68 Kill) but I have no real complaints. I do hope he continues to knock out these quick pulp crime novels. They are definitely must reads.
This is the third book I've read by Mr. Smith and certainly won't be the last. It's a great page turner that crackles with energy and plenty of violence. I didn't enjoy it as much as his other novels (Depraved and 68 Kill) but I have no real complaints. I do hope he continues to knock out these quick pulp crime novels. They are definitely must reads.
May 28, 2015
Not what I have come to expect from a Bryan Smith novel. It was fast and held my interest until the end, it had action, violence, humor, and typical elements you would find in a Smith book, but was unbalanced like his other works.
August 2, 2015
Like Laymon, Smith has shown fans that he can write horror as well as Laymon. Now he proves to be even better than Laymon at pulpy crime novels. With a snowball effect guiding the plot, this one is not going to increase your IQ but it is pure fun entertainment.
September 23, 2015
When Russian criminals try to shake down a wealthy, irresponsible man, the man's enemies try to protect him. Good characters with a plot that never sags, this was a good read.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews