Change of Luck: Not My Fault

Change of Luck: Not My Fault by Ken Saik is a fun and thought-provoking young adult parable mystery that proposes a seemingly magnificent fantasy—what if you had money that you could spend over and over again?—and reveals how quickly that fantasy could transform into something terrible.

At the center of the story is Bruce, a likable young boy who finds himself in possession of a mysterious one-hundred-dollar bill that simply refuses to part from him. No matter how many times he tries to spend the money or give it away, the same wrinkled bill with its distinctive tear eventually finds its way back to him. What initially seems like great luck soon becomes a source of anxiety, suspicion, dishonesty, and even danger.

One of the strongest aspects of the novel is the way Saik approaches this phenomenon from a child's perspective. Bruce isn't set on exploiting the money to get rich. Instead, he fears what the adults around him will think when money that he has already spent inexplicably reappears in his wallet.

Bruce's world harbors a strong sense of community, and his relationships with his father, Tara, Ron, Bart, Maggie, and Alex allow the novel's lessons to emerge naturally through everyday interactions rather than through the supernatural mystery alone.

The mysterious $100 bill works particularly well as a metaphor. Money normally represents freedom and opportunity, yet for Bruce, it becomes a burden. The more he attempts to control the situation, the more complicated his life becomes.

At its core, Change of Luck: Not My Fault is an imaginative story about much more than a magical hundred-dollar bill. It explores themes of honesty, responsibility, temptation, friendship, generosity, family, and the complicated difference between good fortune and genuine happiness. Saik turns the straightforward premise of "what if?" into an entertaining morality tale sure to be greatly enjoyed by his readers.