Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.
We've all heard that saying when someone is trying to gently suggest that we try to look at a situation from another person’s perspective. Usually that person is someone we’re struggling to get along with. When it comes to science fiction, some authors take that phrase literally.
Body swap fiction puts the main character of a story in someone else’s body. Sometimes they can control it, other times they can’t. But either way, the idea of being able to leave your body is an interesting journey that makes for a fantastic ride.
One thing that makes body swap fiction so compelling is that it’s an excellent way to explore larger themes like empathy and identity. Who are we if we can simply become someone else? And does that switch make it easier for us to appreciate life in a fuller context? From brutal games to trying to find love, here are seven body swap novels so you can read through someone else’s eyes.
Different Minds
After losing her mother and aunt in a horrible accident, Cassandra donates her organs and goes to Colorado to die. Little did she know one of those organs would be part of her brain… or that her soul would be transferred with it. She wakes up in Julie’s body and has to pretend she’s lost her memory. But when she discovers that Julie’s fiancé is a man she hates and then runs into the man she always loved in secret, Cassandra wonders if being in Julie’s body means that she’s been given a second chance.
Hopscotch
Eduard Swan uses his ability to swap bodies to build a lucrative business. Anyone who doesn’t want to experience pain, discomfort, or anything unpleasant can avoid it—for a price. Eduard will live it for them. But when one of his clients, one of the world’s most powerful men, decides he doesn’t want to give his body back, Eduard has no choice but to steal it. On the run, moving through the underground with two childhood friends, Eduard is forced to face the true meaning of identity in a world where appearances mean both nothing and everything.
The Tale of the Body Thief
Lestat has enjoyed his time as prince of the living dead. He’s built himself up to be the things of legends. Hero, enchanter, seducer. He’s faced highs and lows, and throughout it all, he's come out on top. But now, he faces his most dire test yet. Because someone has tricked LeStat into giving up the thing that he values the most, and he’ll do anything to get it back.
Immortal Longings
In the kingdom of Talin, there are some who can jump bodies. For those who can do this confidently, the palace hosts a set of games in its twin city capital. It’s a fight to the death, but the reward is unimaginable riches. Five years ago, Princess Calla Tuoleimi murdered her family, and she plans on winning the games to finish the job and eradicate the monarchy entirely. But Anton Makusa needs to win almost as badly as she does. The competitors strike an alliance based on lies that develops into something more. In the end, there can only be one winner, and both Calla and Anton will have to choose whether to follow their head or their heart across the finish line.
Touch
When Kepler is beaten nearly to death by a drunken vagrant, he reaches out to his would-be murderer desperate to stay alive. In that moment, a switch takes place, and Keplar is no longer looking up, but down at his own bettered body. Somehow, he now has the ability to switch from body to body, living life in someone else’s skin and seeing things through their eyes. But when one of his hosts is brutally assassinated, Keplar takes her death personally. He sets out to discover the truth of her murder and avenge her death as best he can.
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
Evelyn Hardcastle is going to die. There’s nothing Aiden Bishop can do to stop it, except solve her murder. Every morning he wakes up in a new body and has until 11 pm to find the killer. But he only has eight witnesses, which means only eight days. And if he can’t solve the mystery, the cycle will start over, forcing Aiden to begin again.
Every Day
A boy named A wakes up every day in a different body, living a different life. The only thing that’s the same is that he is in love with the same girl. He’s learned to live with the unpredictability of his life. Until he wakes up in the body of Justin, and Justin’s girlfriend is the girl A has been dreaming about his entire life. He’ll do anything to stay in this life, where he can be with the girl he loves every day forever.
Featured image: Anton Malanin / Unsplash
