The Switch is a 1978 crime novel by American author Elmore Leonard. It marks the first appearance of the criminals Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara, who later reappear in Leonard's 1992 novel Rum Punch.

The novel received an Edgar Award nomination for Best Paperback Original in 1979.

It was adapted into the black‑comedy crime film Life of Crime, which premiered at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.

Plot

Ordell Robbie and Louis Gara, two small‑time ex-convicts, plot to kidnap the wife of a Detroit real‐estate developer for ransom. They abduct Mickey Dawson, expecting her husband to pay handsomely, only to find that he will not cooperate and that Mickey is more resourceful than anticipated. As their scheme unravels, Mickey grows to enjoy her captivity and conspires with Ordell and Louis to con her husband out of his own fortune.

Characters

  • Ordell Robbie – A charismatic ex‐con and mastermind of the kidnapping plot. E.L. "A light skin black guy".
  • Louis Gara – Ordell’s loyal accomplice. E.L. "A dark skin white guy".
  • Mickey Dawson – The kidnapped housewife, initially fearful but increasingly assertive.
  • Frank Dawson – Mickey's husband, A Detroit developer whose refusal to pay ransom sets the plot in motion.
  • Bo Dawson – Mickey's teenage son.
  • Richard – Ordell's third accomplice and fall guy, a racist buffoon. A security guard with bad body odor.
  • Melanie Ralston – Frank Dawson's busty mistress and manipulator.

Editions

The Switch was first published on January 1, 1978, by Bantam Books. It was reissued in December 2004 by Orion Publishing Co. In June 2025 it appeared in Penguin’s Modern Classics – Crime & Espionage series.