PRAISED BY THE LOS ANGELES TIMES
“Roger Hoffman’s use of language brings the reader directly into the backrooms and battlefields where the story comes to life… his writing is unique and exciting and he should be taken seriously as a new writer.”
— Los Angeles Times
Early Reader Praise
“Living in Dallas, I was skeptical at first—local political scandals don't usually make for great international spy thrillers. But Hoffman threads that needle perfectly. The corruption sting feels like the first domino, and watching every domino fall across three continents is a genuinely thrilling ride. One of my top reads this year.”
“The plot moves like a freight train once the CIA angle kicks in. Crossroads USA as a front company is a genius concept—the idea that terrorists are literally walking into a trap and feeding intelligence into Iran is wild.”
“Fast, smart, and surprisingly emotional for a thriller. The Middle East sections are written with a level of detail that made me double check whether this was fiction or memoir.”
“As someone who worked adjacent to government for most of my career, I can say the institutional details in this book ring true in ways most thrillers don't bother with. The bureaucratic hesitation, the chain of approvals, the paranoia—it’s all there.”
“I picked this up because of the ‘inspired by real events’ angle, and you can feel that authenticity throughout. The evolution from Roger Hoffman to Michael Eastman is especially interesting—it’s not glamorous, it feels costly.”
What if one mistake in Dallas didn’t just cost a man everything…
but pulled him into a covert war that could change the world?
Door Number Three is a high-velocity thriller inspired by real events that begin in the shadows of Dallas politics—and explode onto the global stage of espionage.
It starts with an FBI corruption sting.
One arrest.
One decision.
And a choice that changes everything.
Facing prison, Roger Hoffman makes a move that alters the course of his life—forming an unlikely bond with the man who arrests him: FBI Special Agent Don Sherman.
When the trial ends, the story doesn’t.
It escalates.
Hoffman is quietly recruited by the CIA and reborn under a new identity:
Michael Eastman
Investment banker.
Trusted insider.
Covert operative.
His cover: a Las Vegas investment firm tied to a powerful casino empire.
His real mission: infiltrate global criminal and terror networks moving money across borders.
From the deserts of Iraq to the shadows of Iran, Eastman is thrust into a hidden war—dodging ambushes, surviving rocket attacks, and working alongside Mossad operatives in a high-stakes intelligence operation.
At the center of it all: Crossroads USA—a CIA-backed front designed to lure terrorists and their financiers into the open, feeding intelligence into one of the most daring covert listening networks ever embedded inside Iran.
This isn’t just a story of espionage.
It’s a story of transformation.
Of loyalty forged under fire.
Of two men—once on opposite sides of the law—who become brothers in a war no one sees.
Inspired by true events.
Driven by loyalty.
Powered by courage.
Open the door.
The ride doesn’t slow down.
For more than a decade, Roger S. Hoffman lived undercover, operating in the shadows as adeep-cover informant for the federal government. He carried no badge, claimed noprotection, and survived by trusting no one.Embedded in criminal worlds where exposure meant death, Hoffman balanced loyalty andbetrayal, truth and fabrication. Every relationship was a calculated risk. Every day could behis lastAlong the way, he formed a life-changing friendship with Special Agent Don Sherman.Years later, WFAA.com the ABC affiliate in Dallas would capture the essence of that bondwith a headline that said it best:"Former Dallas FBI corruption agent sidelined by stroke now relies on unlikelyfriendship."The quote from the broadcast:"But it was in his darkest days after he got sick that Sherman would find out who his realfriends were. The taciturn, just-the-facts G-man who rarely showed emotion found himselfdependent on others. Some friends disappeared, he said. But one friend remainedsteadfast and never wavered. His name is Roger Hoffman, a friend he met in the unlikeliestof circumstances. It was not a pleasant acquaintance for Hoffman in the beginning."Door Number Three is an honest, heartfelt, and deeply human portrayal of the remarkablefriendship-yes, brotherhood-that grew between two men who once stood on oppositesides of the law.Roger has lived in the Dallas, Texas, area for more than 50 years and is the father of onechild.
