I woke up one morning in Miami, Florida to find my career, my passion, and my sanity extracted from beneath me. Rogue cops manipulated the media and destroyed my police career to cover up their deception and their official misconduct, while attorneys and state prosecutors sought to understand if their behavior actually rose to the level of an illegal/criminal act. At the end of the day, one glaring question remained: Who are the good guys? And who are the bad guys? I continued on with my life, emotionally distraught.Not long afterwards, I regained my bearings and launched a new career deeply embedded in the nightlife of the Miami bar business. I flourished for the next twelve years until fate and bad luck found me locked up in a federal prison on drug trafficking charges.The title of this book refers to the twenty-hour Greyhound bus ride I took back to Miami after completing my federal prison sentence. Sitting in my seat and watching the night move past prompted flashbacks of my life and caused me to relive the events that brought me to that moment. The magic in this journey brings to light startling revelations that act as a catalyst to transform me back to the person I always was. My passion, my drive, my perseverance, and any good traits I ever had that drove me at a young age to protect and serve the citizens of my city-they returned! I walked off that Greyhound bus in the early morning hours wielding a newfound hope, desire, and perseverance that would ultimately propel me to a life I could have only imagined. Midwest Book Review Critique: The synopsis is a restated account of a remarkable life as described by L. A. Carastro in a simply riveting memoir. Unreservedly recommended for both community and academic library Contemporary American Biography collections, The Bus Ride Back is one of those life stories that will linger in the mind and memory long after the book itself has been finished and set back upon the shelf.
