The Switch

The Switch by Elmore Leonard
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When they hatch a plot to kidnap a millionaire's wife and hold her for ransom, Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara over look one detail: what if the millionaire doesn't want her back?

Ever wonder how the guys in Rum Punch (aka Jackie Brown) ended up where they were? This is the first caper starring Ordell and Louis and is a pretty slick piece of work, as befits a book by Elmore Leonard.

As always with old Dutch, the dialogue is slicker than a water slide covered with Vaseline. Ordell and Louis, the criminals in the piece, are far more likable than their apparent mark, Mickey Dawson's asshole husband Frank.

Once Mickey is kidnapped, the book really takes off. Ordell does some scheming with Melanie behind the backs of Louis and Frank and Mickey steps up.

Still, I had a hard time rating this book. It was enjoyable but honestly, there isn't a lot to it. It has the standard Leonard hallmarks and was fun but it seemed really short and wasn't one of his heavy hitters. There wasn't a lot to distinguish it from the rest of the Leonard library.

The Switch had it's moments but wasn't all that memorable. In fact, I'm already forgetting some of the characters' names. Three out of five stars.

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