Under "Heart of Darkness"

My wife Janet and I were on a cruise to the Caribbean and were sitting in on a discussion of the culture and politics of Nicaragua before leaving the ship to see the jungle and the village. As soon as we left the ship I was struck by the presence of military personnel and the checkpoints, some operated by gang members. At one point the bus driver negotiated a payment, a bribe, and handed money to a heavily armed man in fatigues before the bus was allowed to pass. 

While walking on the trial in the jungle I saw a man carrying a machine gun following and when I asked the guide if we were in danger I was told he was there to protect us. 

As the bus passed through the village I saw a prison without buildings inside as described in the book, a hospital with an ambulance out front and a rundown school across the street.

The book accurately describes these locations while the remainder is fiction which I believe depicts what I expect could or did happen in the years since I visited.

Brad Morrison is an invention to tie the series together.