Wake Up Happy Every Day: A Novel

When Nicky’s best friend Russell dies during Russell’s private birthday celebration, Nicky doesn’t call for an ambulance immediately. The billionaire has just been explaining to Nicky how he’s cut ties with all of his business associates, family, and friends so that he can travel the world living life to the fullest. In other words, there’s no who knows Russell but Nicky. What if he were to actually become his life-long best friend? When he does call the paramedics, he reports the tragic death of Nicky Fisher, and his life as Russell Knox begins.

The narrative switches among several different characters. Nicky tells the tale of his transformation, but there’s more to the story. He doesn’t know about Lorna, the daughter Russell never met, or Catherine, who’s following his every movement with a job to do. There’s Polly, his father’s caretaker who’s trying to have a baby, and Jesus, his chauffeur who needs money to start his own business. Each requires something different in order to be happy. I expected Wake Up Happy Every Day to be a morality tale; I predicted disaster. While there are a number of mini-catastrophes, the characters surprised me with creative problem solving, leading the book to an unexpected conclusion.