I Would Prefer Not To

Archives
May 15, 2026

Cover Art For The Acolyte

Cover art for The Acolyte, a novel by Richard Dooling

A quarterly miscellany of essays by Richard Dooling and news about his upcoming books. Subscribe here.

The Acolyte: A Novel

Cover art for Richard Dooling's new novel, The Acolyte. It features a candle with a candlelighter above it, and smoke coming from an extinguished candle with the features of a spooky face barely visible in the smoke.
His Faith Is Their Weapon

I like the spooky face in the smoke.

Publication date is June 16, 2026. You can preorder the Kindle ebook on Amazon.

Cover Copy

His Faith Is Their Weapon.

The FBI closes in on a Catholic priest running a Darknet child exploitation ring.

Hank is thirteen, head altar boy at a flagship Catholic parish, and devoted to three things: the Church, his brotherhood of altar boys, and Nora, whose father is the archbishop's lawyer. When the FBI raids the cathedral and seizes evidence, they need Hank. So does the Church, for opposite reasons.

Caught between Adrienne, a young federal prosecutor building the case, and an institution that demands his silence, Hank goes looking for the truth in the catacombs beneath the cathedral. What he finds shakes his faith in everything but his true love.

Available June 16 on Kindle and in paperback. Audiobook coming soon after. Preorder the Kindle ebook on Amazon.

Grizzly Bears

I was in the middle of writing an essay on grizzlies, when the recent bear attacks in Yellowstone and Glacier National Park made the news. I'll get the article to you soon. I thought I'd send the cover art along first.

Replies to this email

Some have asked if I see replies to these emails. Yes, I do, eventually. Also, whether you hit reply or reply-all, nobody will see your email except me. The Buttondown email service is just a conduit from you to me at newsletter@dooling.com.

If you ever find this email in your Spam folder, please mark it "Not Spam" and then let me know. I'll see if I can fix it on my end.

Please Forward This Email

I hope to attract subscribers without using more intrusive newsletter platforms, so please forward this email to other passionate readers and writers.

Don't miss what's next. Subscribe to I Would Prefer Not To:
Share this email:
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn Share on Threads Share via email Share on Bluesky
Twitter
dooling.com
richarddooling.substack.com
medium.com
Powered by Buttondown, the easiest way to start and grow your newsletter.