Impulse: A Gripping New Military Thriller Introducing the Recon Priest Series

In Impulse, the debut novel of the Recon Priest series by Don Francisco Bay, readers meet Gunnery Sergeant Alvarez "Dutch" Petersen. After the tragic murder of his wife and son, a veteran of twenty-one years of service trades his rifle for the cloth, seeking redemption in the Oakland Hills seminary. Now a priest at San Francisco’s historic Mission Dolores, Dutch finds his past and present colliding when a routine confession uncovers a dangerous criminal conspiracy involving military-grade hardware and international cartels.

Bay masterfully explores the intersection of faith and combat, portraying a protagonist who is neither a vigilante nor a traditional cleric. Dutch remains a man defined by his tactical expertise and his profound spiritual calling, refusing to let either side of his identity win. The narrative moves with a spare, observational intensity, capturing the heavy atmosphere of grief as Dutch navigates a world where the line between redemption and vengeance is constantly blurred.

As the investigation leads to a shocking climax at Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Dutch is caught in a web of corruption that reaches far beyond the parish. With a mysterious Vatican reassignment sending him back to the site of his greatest trauma, the stage is set for a high-stakes series. Impulse is a must-read for fans of literary crime fiction who appreciate complex character studies and stories that treat faith as a serious, transformative force.