Foreword
Psychologists tell us with regularity of the dramatic changes an individual can suddenly execute overnight, given the necessary trauma-a shock, perhaps, to his carefully constructed coordinates of reality; the death or loss of a loved One, a sudden change in his financial condition, a run-in with the law. Stories abound of shy spinsterish girls who amazingly become coquettish flirts in the twinkling of an eye, mousy milquetoast office underlings who, given their free rein, become captains of industry, ruthlessly pummeling their way to success and wealth.
Certainly in these cases, the capacity for such a change has always been there, somewhere lurking in the unconscious, waiting for the right catalyst to transform the person's whole personality; nevertheless, it was with keen interest and empathy that we observe such metamorphic transformations, for it could as easily have happened to one of us. All of us, at one time or another, have labored under the excesses of an oppressive boss, daydreamed of the sweeping reforms we could make if only given the chance, talked of how we would run the country if we were president, or fantasied the thrills of just packing it all in and moving to another city, another country, changing our identity and history and starting afresh. But it is not often that one of us really has the chance ... bosses in power tend to stay in power, employees are not often given a say in instituting changes, and most of us will neither become president or move to some exotic land in search of a new name and adventure. So we are left with vicariously thrilling to the excitement of those who do make the leap.
Aston Marlowe, one of our most keenly insighted writers, has successfully probed this sociological phenomenon with his usual fast-paced style and amazing clarity. In The Angry Swappers, we are given the contemporary story of not one, but two people who effectively make this mind-shattering leap, bridging two identities, two personalities, to let their long-dormant real selves emerge in control. An accountant, timid and retiring; his wife, withdrawn and sexually-inhibited, become ... well, perhaps it is better to let our author tell you the story.