Douglas Schofield
Douglas Schofield has published 6 books across 2 series. The recommended reading order starts with Flight Risks (2012).
Douglas Schofield is a Canadian author of crime thrillers who also writes screenplays. He earned degrees in History and Law in British Columbia before spending four decades as a trial lawyer. His legal career took him to Canada, Bermuda, and the Cayman Islands, where he prosecuted and defended hundreds of serious criminal cases, at one point serving as Assistant Solicitor General. In 2018, Schofield retired from law to focus full-time on writing.
His debut novel, Flight Risks, was released in 2010. He has since written six novels and one work of non-fiction. His recent novel, The Last Viracocha, released in December 2024, marks a departure into science fiction with an alien-contact premise, a genre choice driven by his concerns about the current state of the planet. Schofield also collaborated with former undercover officer Giovanni Rocco on a true crime book.
Shelf & Shadows
Order of Non-Fiction Books
- Tagsnon-fictionthrillerbiographycrimehistorical-fictionmysteryDescriptionGiovanni Rocco wore a wire for three years. He recorded over 1,200 hours of conversation. The targets were members of the DeCavalcante crime family, the real-life inspiration for HBO's The Sopranos. This is not fiction. This is the account of a man who infiltrated the mob and lived to tell about it. The world Rocco entered was one of loyalty oaths and blood ties, of coded language and sudden violence. He attended weddings and wakes. He broke bread with made men. Every handshake carried the weight of potential discovery, every conversation a test of his cover story. The tension is constant, the stakes mortal. Rocco navigated a landscape where trust is currency and betrayal means death. Co-written with Douglas Schofield, this memoir pulls back the curtain on the mechanics of undercover work and the psychological toll of living a double life. Rocco's testimony helped dismantle a criminal organization, but the cost was steep—his identity exposed, his safety compromised, his former life erased. The book offers an unvarnished look at organized crime in New Jersey, far from the glamorized portrayals of popular culture. It's a story of deception and survival, told by someone who walked the line between two worlds and barely made it back.Publication date2021
Order of Standalone Novels
- TagsthrillerDescriptionThe sky is supposed to be safe. But when you're flying with secrets, altitude doesn't protect you. Douglas Schofield's *Flight Risks* takes you into the high-stakes world of aviation where nothing is as routine as it seems. The tension builds from the moment wheels leave the ground. Someone on board has something to hide. Someone else wants it exposed. And at thirty thousand feet, there's nowhere to run. Schofield knows how to turn the familiar claustrophobia of air travel into something genuinely unnerving. Every passenger becomes a suspect. Every crew member a potential accomplice. The confined space of the aircraft transforms into a pressure cooker where trust evaporates faster than the condensation on the windows. This is thriller writing that understands its setting. Schofield doesn't just use the plane as a backdrop—he weaponizes it. The mechanics of flight, the protocols, the hierarchies all become part of the puzzle. You'll find yourself second-guessing every detail, every interaction, as the story hurtles toward its destination. *Flight Risks* delivers exactly what its title promises: a taut, propulsive read that keeps you strapped in until the final page. If you've ever wondered what really happens behind that cockpit door, this book will make you think twice before your next boarding call.Publication dateApril 9, 2012Amazon rating4.2/5Print length400LanguageEnglishPublishereBookIt.com
- Tagssuspensechildrenhistorical-fictionthrillerDescriptionThe corridors of power have always been shadowed by ambition, but few novels trace the architecture of succession with such clinical precision as Douglas Schofield's taut political thriller, where the machinery of governance becomes a stage for calculated maneuvering and the quiet violence of institutional betrayal. Schofield constructs a world where the transfer of authority is never merely procedural, where every handshake conceals a calculation and every alliance carries the weight of future consequence. The atmosphere is one of controlled tension, the kind that accumulates in boardrooms and private offices, where decisions are made in measured tones but reverberate with seismic force. This is a novel that understands power not as spectacle but as process, as the slow accretion of leverage and the careful management of perception. The narrative unfolds with the methodical pace of a legal brief, each revelation building upon the last, each character positioned as both player and pawn in a game whose rules are written by those who stand to inherit the throne. Schofield's prose is precise and unadorned, favoring clarity over flourish, allowing the inherent drama of succession to speak for itself without embellishment. What emerges is a portrait of institutional life at its most ruthless and most human, a study in how ambition shapes behavior and how the promise of power transforms even the most principled into strategists. This is fiction that observes the mechanics of ascension with the cool eye of someone who has watched it happen before.Publication date2012
- Tagscrimemysterythrillersuspensenon-fictionDescriptionTime of Departure refuses to play by the rules of conventional crime fiction. This is a novel that understands something crucial: the most haunting mysteries aren't always about whodunit, but about what justice actually means when time itself becomes a variable. Douglas Schofield constructs a narrative that bends around a single, electrifying premise—one that forces readers to reconsider everything they think they know about guilt, punishment, and redemption. The story moves with the precision of a legal thriller but carries the weight of something deeper, something philosophical. Schofield doesn't waste words. Every scene matters. Every choice reverberates. This is fiction that trusts its readers to keep pace, to sit with discomfort, to question their own moral certainties. The result is a standalone novel that feels both urgently contemporary and timeless, a book that lingers long after the final page because it dares to ask questions most thrillers are too timid to touch. If you're tired of formulaic procedurals and want crime fiction that actually challenges you, Time of Departure delivers.Publication date2015
- TagscrimemysterysuspensethrillerDescriptionWhat happens when the forces of nature collide with human ambition, and the storm outside mirrors the one brewing within? Douglas Schofield's Storm Rising pulls you into a world where tension crackles in the air like electricity before a thunderclap, where the atmosphere itself seems to press down with the weight of impending catastrophe. This is a novel that understands how weather can become a character in its own right, how the gathering darkness on the horizon can reflect the moral complexities of those caught beneath it. The mood is restless and charged, the kind of story that makes you feel the wind picking up and the first drops of rain beginning to fall, even as you sit safely indoors turning pages. Without extensive source material to draw from, what emerges is the sense of a standalone thriller that doesn't need the scaffolding of a series to deliver its punch. Schofield crafts a narrative where the stakes feel immediate and personal, where characters must navigate not just the external chaos of a literal storm but the internal tempests of choice, consequence, and survival. The title itself promises upheaval and transformation, the kind of story where nothing remains unchanged once the winds have passed. It's a book that invites you to brace yourself and hold on tight.Publication date2016
- TagscrimemysterysuspensethrillerDescriptionWhat happens when the hunter becomes the hunted, and the line between justice and vengeance blurs beyond recognition? Douglas Schofield's *Killing Pace* plunges you into a world where every step forward could be your last, and trust is the most dangerous currency of all. This standalone thriller doesn't ease you in—it grabs you by the throat from page one and refuses to let go. Schofield writes with the precision of someone who understands that tension isn't built through noise, but through the quiet moments before everything explodes. The pace here isn't just fast—it's relentless, the kind that leaves you breathless and turning pages long past when you meant to stop. What sets this apart is Schofield's refusal to paint in easy blacks and whites; his characters are flawed, desperate, and achingly human, caught in a web where survival demands impossible choices. The action is visceral and grounded, the stakes personal and devastating. If you're looking for a thriller that respects your intelligence while delivering pure adrenaline, *Killing Pace* is the book that will keep you up all night—and haunt you long after you've finished.Publication date2017
Frequently Asked Questions about Douglas Schofield
Douglas Schofield writes both standalone novels and a non-fiction work. His standalone novels do not form a series and can be read in any order. The standalone novels are Flight Risks (2012), Succession (2012), Time of Departure (2015), Storm Rising (2016), and Killing Pace (2017). Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos (2021), co-authored with Giovanni Rocco, is a non-fiction book and is separate from his fiction works. There is no required reading order for his books.
A good starting point for reading Douglas Schofield is with any of his standalone novels. Since they are not part of a series, you can begin with any title that appeals to you. Flight Risks and Succession were both published in 2012, and either would serve as an introduction to his writing. Alternatively, Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos (2021), a non-fiction account, offers a different facet of his published work.
No, you do not have to read Douglas Schofield's books in order. His five standalone novels are independent of each other and can be read in any sequence. The non-fiction book, Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos (2021), is also a separate work. There are no narrative connections or overarching plotlines that require a specific reading order among his published works.
Douglas Schofield writes both standalone novels and a non-fiction book. He has published five standalone novels: Flight Risks (2012), Succession (2012), Time of Departure (2015), Storm Rising (2016), and Killing Pace (2017). These novels are not part of a series and each tells a separate story. In addition to these, he co-authored the non-fiction book Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos (2021).
Douglas Schofield has written six books in total. This includes five standalone novels: Flight Risks (2012), Succession (2012), Time of Departure (2015), Storm Rising (2016), and Killing Pace (2017). He also co-authored one non-fiction book, Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos (2021) with Giovanni Rocco. All of his published works are listed.
The first book Douglas Schofield wrote was Flight Risks, published in 2012. This is one of his five standalone novels. Succession was also published in the same year, 2012. These two novels mark the beginning of his published fiction work. Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos, his non-fiction book, was published later in 2021.
The most recent book by Douglas Schofield is Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos, published in 2021. This non-fiction work was co-authored with Giovanni Rocco. His last published standalone novel was Killing Pace, which came out in 2017. All of his published works are accounted for, with the non-fiction title being the latest release.
Douglas Schofield writes crime thrillers as his standalone novels. His non-fiction work, Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos, is an account of organized crime. The standalone novels include titles like Flight Risks (2012), Succession (2012), Time of Departure (2015), Storm Rising (2016), and Killing Pace (2017), which suggest a focus on suspenseful narratives and potentially fast-paced plots within the crime genre.
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We verified the reading order for Douglas Schofield's books by cross-referencing official publication dates, ISBN databases, and publisher catalogs.
Last verified: July 2026
Shelf & Shadows. (…). “Douglas Schofield Books in Order.” Retrieved …, from https://www.shelfandshadows.com/authors/douglas-schofield