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Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome, Episode IV: Secret Lovers by Chris Orcutt

Review by Perrin Lovett

 

Say, friends, do you enjoy a good visible polyrhythm? Yeah, I didn’t know that was a thing either, not until I read chapter 21 of today’s subject work of incredible fiction. But trust me, you’ll enjoy it: the dance moves, something Robert Palmer’s dancers would have shimmied along with, and the book. And that book is Secret Lovers, the fourth episode in Chris Orcutt’s Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome, the epic that literally brings the 1980s back to life. 

(©Have Pen, Will Travel. Cover design by Victoria Heath Silk.)

*Orcutt, Chris, Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome, Episode IV: Secret Lovers, New York: Have Pen, Will Travel, 2026.

New York novelist Chris Orcutt has three solid decades of experience crafting literature, with one of them dedicated almost exclusively to writing Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome (BTTA), a masterpiece roughly the length of In Search of Lost Time (Remembrance of Things Past) by Proust. Your reviewer had not really considered it before, but many of Orcutt’s themes in BTTA run along the same lines as those in Remembrance—young love, growing up, timing, appreciation of the arts, et cetera. Orcutt provides a new take on all of those familiar motifs, doing so abnormally well, while integrating elements Proust never touched on, such as action and adventure. Of course, the era and scene-setting are completely different. And that difference makes BTTA especially interesting to America’s Generation X: this is our memory of the past, of a time lost to four decades of temporal transit. And with Episode IV, Secret Lovers, Orcutt brings the past back to life in a way perhaps no other author has ever dared. On full display is Orcutt’s creative genius, impeccable precision, and nearly surreal attention to every little detail. Four episodes in, Secret Lovers might be your reviewer’s favorite so far. Why? Part of it has to do with much of the nostalgia I’ve mentioned in my previous reviews. But the main reason is that it is simply a damned good story! So let’s dive right in.

I hereby incorporate all points of my previous reviews of Bad Boy, True Blue, and Danger Zone as if each point were restated in full. In Secret Lovers, the literary roller coaster goes so fast and hard that one might be well-advised to go limp and just let it ride. Avery “Ace” Craig keeps up the heroic questing readers have come to expect and enjoy as he intrepidly ventures into new territory, all of it set to our glorious 1980s music. The pop-rock flows, as do more classical themes. Orcutt even breaks down the exact timing within a few tunes he references: see “Bugler’s Dream and Olympic Fanfare Medley” on page 35. Also, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” never hurt any book!

As with the other episodes, Secret Lovers shifts gears again — ”drop a gear and disappear,” as the saying goes. This time, instead of slowing, as in Danger Zone, the days roll right along in the story, though each part and act is examined in close detail. And there is an intensification covering many fronts. The result is a thrilling experience that will have the reader on the edge of his seat, scratching his head, pondering, cheering, fearing, and feeling a sense of awe. In short, it’s a spectacular book. And Orcutt has plenty of room to work, as Secret Lovers is the longest episode yet, 422 pages of riveting dramatic exhibition. The book’s chapters are not named—a point I think I failed to make previously; rather, each major scene within a chapter has its own catchy subtitle. For example, on or about page 257, the subtitle is “Gemma’s Fault.” But is it really? One will have to read chapter 17 to find out. Also, speaking of finding out, I’ll bet the seasoned reader likes Gemma. Right? And there’s a chance that more than a few Gemma fans liked those ‘80s video games. What if both of those likes were somehow combined? Read and see; you’ll dig it like a bee on pollen.

As the book opens, Avery sets about resolving the cliffhanger from the end of Danger Zone. Through great wit, selflessness, determination, and muscle, he saves himself and the two ladies he’s trapped with. By now, you know they’re Gemma and Beverly. Orcutt inserts a neat reference to Pheidippides during the sequence, and Avery creates his own legend, replete with a daydream, honors, and a bit of notoriety. His fame, however, leads to the loss of Penny as a girlfriend, something our hero had been contemplating anyway. Relief? Not exactly; from there things get complicated.

The reader will have to discover for himself who the title refers to, and there might be more than one choice or way of looking at matters. Here, I note that Orcutt does a fascinating job going inside the male mind, along with a look at its feminine counterpart. Things quickly escalate! Just when things feel cozy with Gemma, Caitlyn Cray returns. Avery is not opposed to the concept of the “side piece,” as they call her on the street. Nor does he turn down the chance to coach a gaggle of lovely young ladies towards a talent show victory. He also receives what might be the longest and deepest love note in literary history. The law gets involved. Again. And to make Pa happy, if or when Pa finds out, Avery flips the script and uses Latin in geometry class! Of course, he’d better come up with something soon, as there’s a problem with the latter subject. Regarding that problem, he now has an ally, though as of the end of Secret Lovers, they still haven’t concocted a plan that works. Towards the end, Avery even deals with a pesky Gamma stalker. And in the “Jones-Craig Alliance” sequence in chapter 24, he also has to contend with good, old-fashioned suave pretentiousness as it takes aim at his girl. One of them, anyway.

The whole plot moves along fluidly and rapturously thanks to Orcutt’s writing style, exorbitant attention to detail, and lucid imagination. Again, most uncannily, the time in Secret Lovers flows on as it did in the first two episodes; concurrently, keen consideration is given to everything, a detailed exploration just like in Danger Zone. Avery and company walk, run, struggle, and play in a world of details, those ordinary and highly unusual. 

As for the commonplace, it’s really more a matter of light or familiar things, like Orcutt’s use of the bygone department store, Caldor. There’s just something about it. I cannot recall whether I ever visited a Caldor store in person, back in the day; however, with Orcutt’s you-are-there storytelling, I might as well have. As an example of serious matters, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster is presented in an interesting context. 

Something very unusual and serious happens. Readers may know by now that Avery does a little moonlighting work for one of Uncle Sam’s alphabet agencies. In Secret Lovers, chapter 15, he gets involved with another one. See pages 212-232. I’ll not give the process away here, a form of junior “sheep dipping,” but Orcutt presents the matter convincingly and more realistically than one might imagine is possible. And this kind of scenario is not only possible, but very real. In fact, the situation comes across very much like what Udo Ulfkotte describes in Gekaufte Journalisten (Bought Journalists) and his own youthful recruitment by the West German BND. The gubmit recruiter nails two of Avery’s weaknesses, one of which is, as one might imagine, his susceptibility to influence by the fairer sex. While Orcutt’s usage is, of course, fictional, please know that the kind of thing he’s bringing to life really does exist. The scene is excellent and foreshadows the coming episodes of BTTA. We’ve got something to truly look forward to. Know that Avery may be hard-pressed in the future.

He’s already pressed, mostly concerning girls, as-is. Caitlyn and Gemma would be enough, but he also has loose ends and loose screws to wrap up with Inge and Irina. And more ladies too. The boy is smart, wicked smart, but he is sixteen. He spends a lot of the book wondering what he’s doing and why. The reader will ponder along with him. This installment really hit on all cylinders concerning the reading balance between your reviewer’s teenage past and his cresting-the-hill present. 

Secret Lovers ends with another cliffhanger. And the current suspenser has several parts: a ruse to placate an elderly neighbor; and two young women, mere feet apart, whose meeting would be catastrophic. The very end takes place in a gallery hall at the NYC Met. Unlike Caldor, I know for certain I have been to the Met. In fact, I’ve been in that gallery hall leading back to the lobby and exit. Here, despite Orcutt’s excellent description, I still can’t precisely recall my own experience there. Call it a vexing pleasure, something to be expected from this epic: BTTA: Where reading is always a pleasure.

Bodaciously True & Totally Awesome, Episode IV: Secret Lovers is, like the other episodes, a mandatory read. It launches on October 20, 2026, so pre-order it today. While you’re waiting, and if you’re not already up to speed, please review the following: