Without a Net

*Without a Net* is Barry Hornig's autobiographical memoir. It starts during his youth in Brooklyn in the 50's. As a young man he meets an Italian countess with whom he falls in love, and whom he pursues around Europe when her parents try to keep them apart. His involvement in a jewel heist and drug smuggling between Tangiers and Spain lands him in jail. His subsequent tumultuous marriage to the countess conflicts with his hunger for excitement and attraction to the nightlife, and his secret destructive lifestyle leads to a difficult divorce. Hornig recounts his various adventures and near-death experiences in New York City and the Middle East. He has a transformative meeting with Muktananda-ji, a yogi from India, that changes him profoundly. He then finds his "soulmate," a Playboy playmate, and dedicates himself to a more spiritual, mindful way of life.