Meet Grady McGready: A Character Profile

Up next in my character profiles series is Grady McGready—Kayla's love interest and pretty much the best fictional crush EVER.

He's just like Kayla in all the right ways and just different enough to keep things interesting.

Here are some inspo pics I found for him...

Clearly not the same guy, but still...he only has a beard when he's been out in the rainforest for like a week, so I figured a clean-shaven one would be good too...

In The Secret of the Codex (releasing August 28th, pinch me!), Grady McGready comes on the scene just as Kayla's about to make an exciting discovery. They've seen each other at work—they work in the same department at the University of Central Florida, after all—but they've not interacted much. So when Kayla invites him to join in her discovery, just the two of them, sparks start to fly...

Grady is perfect for Kayla in all the right ways, and this fact becomes clear throughout their journey. He grounds her when her world is crashing down, he holds her when she needs to be held, and he doesn't push her when she needs time. I wanted to write the perfect guy, but one who stills has flaws. Because #reallife.

And #mushymoment: I hadn't met my husband when I wrote Grady, but I tell him often that he's my Grady—perfect for me in all the ways that matter. Somehow I feel my heart knew someone like that was possible for me—so I wrote Grady in anticipation of my husband.

Told you it'd be mushy. <3

Grady's a little complicated, too—but unfortunately we don't get to delve as much into his backstory in book 1 as we do Kayla's. But a little mystery is good, right? I'm sure we'll all find out more about him as the series progresses. (Book 2 is currently underway!)

So what do you think? If you've read the free excerpt on this site, how does my description compare to what you pictured in your head?

Until next time,

<3 Melissa

P.S. If you haven't signed up for my email list, why not? I'll send you the first 3 chapters of the book as a thank you, and you can meet Grady for yourself! Sign up here!