Simone and Staggs can be counted on for quality entertainment and this gender-swapping tale is no exception. In the hands of lesser creators, this would be packed with cliches and stereotypes, but Simone clearly put in the work to give this a fresh, authentic feel as a hitman swaps bodies with a housewife in a loveless marriage. Simone's skillful writing and Staggs' gorgeously realistic art bring the characters to life, even the bloody parts. ( )

This is a weird premise handled well. Not perfectly, but well. Unlike a lot of body- and genderswaps I’ve read (mostly fanfic, to be honest), there isn’t much in the way of identity crisis or personality switch. The hitman doesn’t suddenly become super feminine, for instance, though he does embrace domesticity in his own way, and similar things go for the housewife. There’s also not as much about orientation or gender as I’d expected—they are who they are and they own it—and in general, the switch is treated believably and the writers make some good points about society and respect that I’m kind of surprised haven’t turned up in bodyswap work before. And I was pleased to see a prominent trans lesbian character, who is awesome but also helps reinforce that the body swap stuff is not the same as actual queer experiences.

(That said, I’m not mlm, wlw, or trans, so I can’t say for sure that this is all treated with the respect and care it requires or that it’s totally harmless and inoffensive. It doesn’t raise any red flags that I can recall, but … yeah.)

In terms of the story itself, it was fun! Lots of action and character growth, though it took me a few chapters to wrap my head around what was going on in the hitman’s (body’s) life. Plenty of commentary, which I’ve mentioned and I think was my favourite part, but lots of empowerment and badassery in other ways, and very feminist to boot. There was cheering in a few spots. I’m looking forward to where things go next and was kind of disappointed the second volume doesn’t seem to be out yet.

The body swap mechanism is probably my least favourite bit, but it’s treated as the violation it is, the characters deal with it appropriately, and, well, it’s essentially a MacGuffin so I can suspend my disbelief in any case.

Reccing this one but not too hard, because I’m not qualified to really vet this, and also, I didn’t love it, just liked it quite a bit.

Warnings: Gore and violence. Spousal abuse, sexual harassment, and misogyny. Some gender stuff that could’ve gone a bit further.

6.8/10 ( )

I have seen several blurbs referring to this mess as a twist on [b:Freaky Friday|104711|Freaky Friday|Mary Rodgers|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1171523923s/104711.jpg|1229585], but I think the gonzo Nic Cage/John Travolta action flick Face/Off would be more apt. As in that film, so much of the plot of this book relies on the main characters not acting as reasonable people would. Instead of delving much, the creative team just goes for the cool quip or moment of violence as they send their body-switched duo up against a couple of over-the-top bad guys.

I had to keep reminding myself this was written by a woman as the male character in a female body just slam dunked the change while the woman in a man's body floundered about helplessly for much of the story. He rocked the suburbs again and again, while her one big victory early on was cleaning up really well. I know this was driven by their one-note personalities - stud hitman and doormat housewife - but it still comes across as a negative signal to be transmitting.

The art bugged me too, as it seemed at times to be based on digital alteration of photographs like that Richard Linklater animated movie, Waking Life. Or perhaps the awful mottled coloring just made it look that way. Regardless, the pictures struck me as distractingly ugly and kept throwing me out of the story.

If not for the amazingly effective use of the word "transphobe" late in the book, I might even have gone for a one-star rating. That moment, and the end-matter interview with Charles Battersby made me realize how more interesting this story would have been told mainly from the point of view of the vastly underutilized transgender supporting character. I want to read that book, not this loosey-goosey action trash. ( )

Juniper is a Seattle housewife who is abused by her husband. Cason is a hitman for a mob boss in Chicago (I think), who seems somewhat more thoughtful and intelligent than is common for the breed. For reasons explained later, the two magically swap bodies. Cason finds himself in Juniper’s body; Juniper is now a male hitman. It’s hardly an original conceit – there’s a novel from 1931 which has exactly the same premise! – and it’s been used plenty of times since, both in cinema and written fiction. Simone and Stagg have bought a modern sensibility to the story, inasmuch as they were careful to consult trans readers in order to depict their characters’ experiences in an appropriately sensitive way. And yet… they marry this with a brutal mobster plot. Certainly, represent trans people as accurately and sensitively as posssible, but why do we need to have a story which features domestic violence and mobster brutality? Those earlier body swap stories? They were comedies. In Crosswind, it’s good the way the two principals adapt to their new situation… But I could have done without the clichéd violence – and using violence, by “Juniper”, to resolve the chauvinism she’d been experiencing? I’m not sure that’s a good message: woman experiencing chauvinism, can only be resolved by a man taking over the woman’s body and behaving like a man? Disappointing. ( )