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Busting Timothy Leary
Praise for Busting Timothy Leary
"I couldn't put this down! Bernard Ross's rollicking novel, inspired by an outlandish true story, deftly captures the spirit of the 1960s with humor, wisdom and compassion. Highly recommended!"
Steven L. Davis, co-author of The Most Dangerous Man in America and Dallas 1963. Winner of the Pen Center Literary Award.
An undercover soldier uncovers more than he bargained for!
In 1965, Lieutenant Sean Kelly returns from Vietnam to undergo advanced training with the Special Forces. He is recruited to infiltrate the counterculture. His first mission is to penetrate Timothy Leary’s LSD cult. To succeed, he must become a convincing hippie and function well on psychedelic drugs. However, nothing in his training prepared him for the challenges of uncovering suppressed memories, confronting inner demons, and experiencing the spiritual revelations that LSD unleashes.
His next assignment involves infiltrating the radical student movement, a realm filled with disillusionment and anger. He observes that many within the Civil Rights Movement have embraced Black Power and witnesses devastating race riots firsthand. He attends Vietnam War protests that escalate into violence. His Special Forces skills are put to the test during numerous perilous encounters. These experiences challenge Sean’s core values, test his determination, and fuel his inner growth.
Sean’s journey is an action-packed historical novel set against the captivating backdrop of the 1960s. His story revolves around personal transformation and love, enhanced by his growing self-awareness and the profound realization that his life is a spiritual journey of self-discovery.
"I couldn't put this down! Bernard Ross's rollicking novel, inspired by an outlandish true story, deftly captures the spirit of the 1960s with humor, wisdom and compassion. Highly recommended!"
Steven L. Davis, co-author of The Most Dangerous Man in America and Dallas 1963. Winner of the Pen Center Literary Award.
An undercover soldier uncovers more than he bargained for!
In 1965, Lieutenant Sean Kelly returns from Vietnam to undergo advanced training with the Special Forces. He is recruited to infiltrate the counterculture. His first mission is to penetrate Timothy Leary’s LSD cult. To succeed, he must become a convincing hippie and function well on psychedelic drugs. However, nothing in his training prepared him for the challenges of uncovering suppressed memories, confronting inner demons, and experiencing the spiritual revelations that LSD unleashes.
His next assignment involves infiltrating the radical student movement, a realm filled with disillusionment and anger. He observes that many within the Civil Rights Movement have embraced Black Power and witnesses devastating race riots firsthand. He attends Vietnam War protests that escalate into violence. His Special Forces skills are put to the test during numerous perilous encounters. These experiences challenge Sean’s core values, test his determination, and fuel his inner growth.
Sean’s journey is an action-packed historical novel set against the captivating backdrop of the 1960s. His story revolves around personal transformation and love, enhanced by his growing self-awareness and the profound realization that his life is a spiritual journey of self-discovery.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
341 pages, Unknown Binding
Published April 9, 2025
6 people are currently reading
993 people want to read
About the author
Bernard Ross
2 books61 followersBernard Ross is not a best-selling New York Times author, although his wife believes he should be. He began writing at 76 after selling his stake in a tech company. His books aren’t about business; they are adventures from the hippie-drenched 1960s—a subject he’s well-versed in. He’s written Sipping Sunlight, a memoir, and Busting Timothy Leary, a historical novel.
He splits his time between his homes in Delray Beach, Florida, and Brewster, New York. Ross attended City College of New York and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, became a CPA, founded three companies, and co-founded another. Ross, a child of Holocaust survivors, was born in Poland and moved to Bolivia as an infant. When he was five years old, he immigrated to the U.S.A. with his family.
Ross has practiced meditation since 1969 and credits his success in life and business to the benefits he has gained from meditation and following the ethical principles of his spiritual path. His hobbies include tennis, pickleball, travel, photography, gardening, nature walks, and writing. Ross is happily married and blessed to have a wonderful, close-knit family, including four children and four grandchildren.
He splits his time between his homes in Delray Beach, Florida, and Brewster, New York. Ross attended City College of New York and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, became a CPA, founded three companies, and co-founded another. Ross, a child of Holocaust survivors, was born in Poland and moved to Bolivia as an infant. When he was five years old, he immigrated to the U.S.A. with his family.
Ross has practiced meditation since 1969 and credits his success in life and business to the benefits he has gained from meditation and following the ethical principles of his spiritual path. His hobbies include tennis, pickleball, travel, photography, gardening, nature walks, and writing. Ross is happily married and blessed to have a wonderful, close-knit family, including four children and four grandchildren.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 12, 2025
What a ride! Busting Timothy Leary captures the chaos, beauty, and madness of the 1960s like nothing I’ve read before. The Vietnam scenes are raw and vivid, but it’s Sean Kelly’s inner transformation that gripped me most. His journey from soldier to seeker is emotional and unsettling in the best way. It’s a novel that doesn’t just tell a story, it asks you to question your own relationship with truth and faith.
October 12, 2025
“Spy Thriller Meets Spiritual Awakening”
This book somehow manages to be both an espionage thriller and a meditation on the human soul. Sean Kelly is such a complex protagonist, haunted, loyal, broken, and brave. The mix of historical events and countercultural exploration felt seamless. I loved how the author wove the psychedelic scenes into moments of genuine spiritual clarity. The ending left me breathless.
This book somehow manages to be both an espionage thriller and a meditation on the human soul. Sean Kelly is such a complex protagonist, haunted, loyal, broken, and brave. The mix of historical events and countercultural exploration felt seamless. I loved how the author wove the psychedelic scenes into moments of genuine spiritual clarity. The ending left me breathless.
October 13, 2025
“A Trip Through Time and Consciousness”
There’s a hallucinatory quality to the writing that mirrors Sean’s own transformation. One moment you’re in a warzone, the next you’re in a haze of color and light, questioning what’s real. Ross perfectly captures the tension between control and surrender, ego and enlightenment. I was surprised at how spiritual this book became, it’s not just about busting Leary, it’s about busting yourself open.
There’s a hallucinatory quality to the writing that mirrors Sean’s own transformation. One moment you’re in a warzone, the next you’re in a haze of color and light, questioning what’s real. Ross perfectly captures the tension between control and surrender, ego and enlightenment. I was surprised at how spiritual this book became, it’s not just about busting Leary, it’s about busting yourself open.
October 13, 2025
“A Masterpiece of Mind and Heart”
From the first chapter, I knew I was in the hands of a gifted storyteller. The pacing, emotion, and tension build beautifully toward a conclusion that’s both haunting and transcendent. Ross doesn’t just tell a story about the 60s, he captures the restless, searching energy of that entire generation. I closed the book feeling inspired, shaken, and oddly at peace.
From the first chapter, I knew I was in the hands of a gifted storyteller. The pacing, emotion, and tension build beautifully toward a conclusion that’s both haunting and transcendent. Ross doesn’t just tell a story about the 60s, he captures the restless, searching energy of that entire generation. I closed the book feeling inspired, shaken, and oddly at peace.
October 13, 2025
“From Violence to Vision”
This story hit hard. Sean’s trauma from Vietnam and his violent past are portrayed with brutal honesty, and his later journey into Leary’s world feels like stepping through a mirror, from chaos to consciousness. Ross manages to honor both the pain of war and the hope of spiritual rebirth. It’s emotional, cinematic, and deeply human.
This story hit hard. Sean’s trauma from Vietnam and his violent past are portrayed with brutal honesty, and his later journey into Leary’s world feels like stepping through a mirror, from chaos to consciousness. Ross manages to honor both the pain of war and the hope of spiritual rebirth. It’s emotional, cinematic, and deeply human.
October 13, 2025
“A Vivid Portrait of a Turbulent Era”
You can almost smell the patchouli, hear the protest chants, and feel the tension of a country tearing itself apart. The author’s attention to historical detail is amazing, but it never feels like a history lesson, it’s alive. The way Sean’s undercover missions intersect with real counterculture figures gave the story a chilling authenticity.
You can almost smell the patchouli, hear the protest chants, and feel the tension of a country tearing itself apart. The author’s attention to historical detail is amazing, but it never feels like a history lesson, it’s alive. The way Sean’s undercover missions intersect with real counterculture figures gave the story a chilling authenticity.
October 13, 2025
“Raw, Riveting, and Redemptive”
This novel took me by surprise. It’s rough around the edges in places, much like its hero, but that’s exactly what makes it feel authentic. The writing pulses with life, and the moral questions it raises are timeless. Do we obey authority or conscience? Do we live for duty or truth? I’ll be thinking about this one for a while.
This novel took me by surprise. It’s rough around the edges in places, much like its hero, but that’s exactly what makes it feel authentic. The writing pulses with life, and the moral questions it raises are timeless. Do we obey authority or conscience? Do we live for duty or truth? I’ll be thinking about this one for a while.
June 17, 2025
I loved this book from beginning to end. Bernard Ross evokes the ecstatic arc of the 60s and its chief psychedelics guru, Timothy Leary. An intriguing insider's tale, well-written and endlessly gripping. Take the trip!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews