The Setting of Honestly Always You

Since my upcoming book comes out SUPER SOON (August 24th, 2021!), let’s talk about the setting of Honestly Always You. It may surprise you!

The Location

You might not know this, but Honestly Always You is set in Orlando, Florida! When I was researching colleges for The Secret of the Codex, the University of Central Florida kept coming up (they have one of the best anthropology programs in the country). So while there is a mention of the theme parks we know and love, the book focuses on Mandy and Justin on and around the UCF campus. (With a Montana cameo. If you’ve read the Codex series, that’ll sound familiar. 😉)

Keep reading for a bunch of inspiration pics so you can really picture the setting for yourself (and some hints at how the pics relate to the story).

The When

Honestly Always You is *technically* set in the past. I generally thought of it as 2014/2015 while I was writing it since it takes place 3 years before the Codex series starts, and the first book was published in 2018. (If you followed all of that, you’re on top of things.) But I didn’t write it like a historical novel. Though I did make sure my characters didn’t use tech that wasn’t available then! (Remember having to use a code to unlock your phone every time??)

The Story’s Timeline

Honestly Always You starts the night before Mandy and Justin’s college graduation and ends a month or so into their first semester of grad school. So while there definitely are college vibes (the first chapter happens at a frat party, after all — READ THE FIRST CHAPTER HERE), I don’t see this book as much of a “new adult” story, though it technically is. It’s just two adults who fall in love. (Is that a spoiler? No? Oh, good.)

The Inspo Pics

As promised, what would a post about setting be without tons of inspiration pics? Not good! So here ya go. (And you know I had to write descriptions for each as well.) Enjoy!

A classroom at UCF, where Mandy and Justin might just be taking Grady's class together...

Mandy and Justin on a rooftop (yep, this happens...)

This looks just like a street in Orlando that Mandy LOVES — and also where a "pre" date takes place! 😉

A palm tree grove maybe (definitely) shows up during a steamy scene. 🔥

A museum, downtown, at night...yeah, this scene is SWOONY. 🥰

Justin's brown leather couch — this one shows up in the Codex series, too!

Mandy's love of consignment shopping cannot be refuted.

Imagine for me, if you will...

Your out-of-town family invites themselves over to your tiny, one-bedroom apartment that barely has room for even one person. When the power goes out and the roads are unpassable due to a storm, that family stays the night in your living room. Your mom flippantly suggests that your fake boyfriend (who she doesn't know is fake, obviously) should stay in your room with you. I can neither confirm nor deny that this happens in the book...

Carnations are Mandy's favorite flower — and Justin finds that out pretty quickly. Also, Mandy would TOTALLY have this vase.

A bouquet of red carnations make an appearance near the end of the book. Take your best guess why... 😏

Museum vibes! I just had to — they're archaeology students, after all!

Downtown Orlando at night, which is just beautiful, right?

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Honestly Always You comes out CRAZY soon (August 24th!), so pre-order now by clicking the button or the picture below!

We’re heading into release week, so stay tuned for more about the release! And you can sign up to stay informed, too. Just type in your name and email address below, and I’ll keep you up to date!

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Comment below to let me know which pic gets you most excited to read the story! 👇🏻

<3 Melissa