Behind the Veil
By Tim Malone and Jessica Franzini
(www.o-books.com)
One Man’s Journey from Opioid Addiction to Spirituality and Beyond
Tim Malone seemed to have it all. He had transformed his father’s small staffing company into an empire valued at over $400 million, establishing himself as one of the most successful businessmen in his field. But, behind his business success story, his personal life was unraveling. A failing marriage and personal demons led him down a dark path. For seven years, opioids became his refuge, his escape, and ultimately, his prison.
What emerged from that abyss, however, is nothing short of extraordinary. In his deeply personal and spiritually charged memoir, Behind the Veil: One Man’s Journey from Opioid Addiction to Spirituality and Beyond, Malone reveals how an unexpected companion, a small dog named Boo Boo, set him on a path not only to recovery, but also to an expansive spiritual awakening that would redefine the trajectory of his life.
Behind the Veil is about surviving addiction, yes, but this book offers much more. It is about discovering meaning beyond survival, finding love in unexpected places, and what we can uncover, if we just dare to look beyond the veil of our physical world into the unseen mysteries that surround us.
At its core, Behind the Veil is the story of a man who had reached the pinnacle of professional achievement yet found himself hollowed out inside. When opioids entered Tim’s life, they numbed his pain but also threatened to destroy everything he had built. He describes his descent with unflinching honesty, acknowledging not only the toll on his body, but also the fractures it created in his marriage, his family life, and his identity.
The allure of opioids was both immediate and deceptive. What began as relief from stress and despair gradually became dependence. Over seven years, his world shrank into a cycle of secrecy, shame, and survival. For someone who had once commanded boardrooms and built a multimillion-dollar enterprise, the contrast was devastating. Tim does not sugarcoat the chaos. He brings readers into the reality of addiction: the isolation, the deception, the relentless need for the next dose, while also revealing the human vulnerability beneath it. Addiction, as Tim shows, is not about weakness. It is about wounds left unattended.
Tim carried his addiction into his second marriage to Denise. The turning point arrived in the form of Boo Boo, a Shih Tzu puppy Tim initially resisted. He had told Denise that he didn’t want a dog. He had loved and lost dogs before, and he remembered too well the heartbreak of losing them. He also doubted he had the capacity to care for one while shouldering the weight of his addiction. Denise knew better…
Boo Boo’s arrival proved transformative. Through daily walks, learning to communicate with her, and the simple rhythm of companionship, Tim began to feel the stirrings of a renewed purpose in his life. Boo Boo’s unconditional love reminded him of his own worth. She gave him a reason to get out of bed, to step outside, to reengage with life.
Boo Boo saved me. For the first time in a long time, I felt unequivocally needed.
Boo Boo’s dependence on me was immediate and tangible; she needed me to feed her, walk her, and provide her with love and safety. This sense of being needed was a powerful motivator. It made me realize that to take care of Boo Boo in the way she deserved, I first needed to take care of myself.
Their bond grew into something deeper than mere pet ownership. Boo Boo became a living embodiment of grace, offering love without judgment and presence without condition. In her eyes, Tim saw the possibility of redemption. In her company, he began to confront the destructive path he was on.
For readers who have ever experienced the healing power of animals, these passages will resonate profoundly. Boo Boo was more than a pet. She was his heart, his family, his guide, and ultimately the catalyst for transformation.
As with all great love stories with our pets, you know how this one ends. Boo Boo’s eventual death devastated Tim in ways even he had not anticipated. The grief was raw, almost unbearable. Yet in that darkness, something remarkable began to happen.
Tim started experiencing phenomena he could not explain: orbs (small spheres of light) appearing in photographs, moments of sudden transcendence, encounters that felt like the presence of spirit guides. At first, he doubted his own perceptions. He constantly asked himself, were these tricks of light, products of imagination, or wishful thinking born of grief? But the experiences kept coming, convincing him there was more to learn.
Driven by both grief and curiosity, he immersed himself in study. He read widely across spiritual traditions, consulted teachers, and documented his own encounters through photography and videography. What began as mourning evolved into an exploration of spirituality that reshaped his worldview.
Behind the Veil chronicles this transformation not as a polished doctrine but as the unfolding journey of a seeker. Tim does not present himself as a guru. He is an ordinary man thrust into extraordinary experiences, inviting readers to join him as he questions, doubts, learns, and believes. He shares his encounters with orbs, angels, and mystical beings alongside scholarly insights, bridging the personal and the universal. The result is a narrative that is at once heart-wrenching and uplifting: a love story, a redemption story, and a spiritual exploration interwoven into one.
While Tim’s story is indeed unique, the themes of Behind the Veil touch on some of the most urgent needs of our time. The opioid crisis continues to devastate families across the globe. Tim’s openness about his own descent and recovery offers a beacon of hope—an embodied reminder that healing is truly possible.
This memoir’s heartbeat will speak to anyone grappling with loss, grief, or disillusionment, offering a vision of renewal through connection with something greater than ourselves. Tim shows that spirituality need not be abstract or confined to formal religious institutions. It can be lived in daily moments, revealed in small signs, and awakened in the midst of ordinary life.
Tim did not grow up seeking enlightenment. He was a businessman, defined by numbers, performance, and success. Yet life, through addiction, love, and loss, redirected him toward a path he never could have foreseen. For more than eight years, he has immersed himself in studying spirituality. He has read hundreds of books, taken thousands of photographs of unexplained phenomena, and sought wisdom from teachers across traditions. His memoir is not theoretical but experiential: proof that profound transformation is possible, no matter where one begins.
When asked why he wrote Behind the Veil, Tim’s answer is simple: “To inspire.”
Boo Boo taught me that love doesn’t end, he says.
It transforms. It carries us forward. And it connects us to everything that matters.
There is more out there. I have seen it.
In the end, Behind the Veil is not just the story of one man. It is a story of what it means to be human: to succeed and still feel empty, to fall and rise again, to love and to grieve, and to glimpse the mysteries that lie beyond what we can see.
Tim’s candor is one of the book’s greatest strengths. Readers are not handed a sanitized recovery narrative. They are invited into the messy, painful, and deeply human struggle of a man fighting his way back to life. And because he shares his journey with such honesty, the story resonates with anyone who has ever faced rock bottom, whether through addiction, grief, or personal loss.
Ultimately, Behind the Veil reminds us that beyond every veil, whether it be addiction despair, or even death, there is a miraculous light waiting to be found
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Behind the Veil is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the transformative power of love. It offers both hope and encouragement to those struggling with addiction, and Tim’s story is a beacon of light for anyone who has faced rock bottom. This book also provides an inspirational and sweeping foundation of knowledge for those seeking a deeper understanding of the spiritual realm.
Behind the Veil by Tim Malone and Jessica Franzini is available from www.o-books.com and from wherever books are sold. Release date December 1st, 2025.
BOOK LINK: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/o-books/our-books/behind-veil
