Today we welcome Lexi Post to answer a few questions for the release of Hard as a Rock Cowboy, book 2 of the Rocky Road Ranch series.

Welcome! Can you tell us a little bit about what inspired this book in the series?

Thank you for having me 🤠 All my stories are inspired by classic literature. I know, weird, right? But that’s what I grew up on. The problem with classic literature is that most of it ends badly with someone dying or their hopes and dreams being dashed, like the Greek play that inspired this story, Antigone. Almost everyone dies! But I write happily ever afters, so I take something from the original classic and run with it…in a completely different direction. In Antigone there are family struggles on both the heroine and hero’s side. In Hard as a Rock Cowboy, because sometimes Brody’s head is as hard as a rock, as well as his body, he finds himself struggling between his promise to his father and his need to strike out on his own to fulfill his own destiny. Throw in Hannah, who is struggling with being without any family, and it completely complicates matters.

What helps you get into the right mood to write and get inspiration?

Deadlines help. Just kidding…sort of. I’ve more or less trained my brain to start thinking creatively every day at a certain time and in a certain place. That time starts to roll around and the whole logic side of my brain starts to shut down out of habit. Not an easy task as I’m very logical (Mr. Spock is my dream date, LOL). But by the time I sit down to write, my logical side is ready for a nap, and my creative side is wide awake like a cat with the zoomies.

Where did you spend most of your time while writing this book?

In my head. I watch the scenes play out in my mind and type what I see. Which is a feat in itself because I can’t type worth beans. As to the location I was at, that would be my purple recliner in the corner of my living room with my electric fireplace on for ambiance, Whiskey, my cat in the recliner next to me, Bailey, my other cat in the box in front of the fireplace, and a cup of hot chai on my end table.

What is something you learned about your writing process while writing this book?

I learned that I can’t write through hurricanes. We had three hit us this year, luckily all were sideswipes, but the preparation beforehand, the stress of watching the track the day of, and the clean up afterward took not only chunks of my time but my mental focus as well. My husband and I had my mother and my brother-in-law living on our property, Firefly Acres, and both are disabled, so we had to prepare for them as well. It took a toll, and I needed some extra time to give Brody and Hannah the happy ending they deserved.

What is your favorite part about the dynamic between Hannah and Brody?

I like that they come from completely different backgrounds and have to learn about each other. I also like that they try to understand each other. Hannah has no family left and has lived in the city her whole life. Brody comes from a family of six and lives on a working cattle ranch that has been in his family for generations. Hannah is incredibly sweet, but she has a pit like a peach, which Brody finds more than once. That’s my favorite part, when she stops him in his track from steamrolling over her, even if he’s unconscious he’s doing it.

Why is this series set in Arizona?

I lived in Arizona, and it has a beauty all its own. The landscape is completely different than a Colorado ranch or even a Texas ranch. All my cowboy stories are set there because I know it, and what I don’t know, I ask my friends who still live there.

Are there more Rocky Road books coming our way?

Yes! There will actually be six in all. Next up is Rock-A-Bye Cowboy, and it’s pretty easy to figure out whose story that one is 😊

What is something you are loving right now, a tv show, book, food, etc.?

Ghosts! I absolutely love this show. I can’t get enough of it. It combines my love of history with my creative mind’s supernatural stories, and it’s funny. What’s not to love? I like how it leaves breadcrumbs of information about the characters and events from show to show until we finally learn the whole story even as we are engaged in that one episode’s plot. They just need to add a cowboy, and it would be perfect. Don’t you agree?

Want to know more about Hard as a Rock Cowboy?

She’s the only thing standing in the way of the life he’s always wanted…

Brody Dunn is anxious to start his training as a wildlife manager and begin his new career away from Rocky Road Ranch. His father has agreed to release him from his promise to work on the ranch if he can convince the neighbors to sell their land.

When he discovers that the granddaughter of the elderly couple who owned the land has inherited it, and better yet, has lived in the city her entire life never knowing the land existed, he’s sure it will be easy getting her to sell.

Hannah Kingsley is shocked yet thrilled to discover she owns land in Four Peaks. Though it’s nothing but desert and an old casita, it’s all hers. Besides, it even comes with a knowledgeable and handsome neighbor! What could be better? It doesn’t take long for her to realize Brody wants her to sell right away, yet the more she learns about her property, the town, and him, the more she knows this is the place for her. And just maybe, Brody’s the man for her as well. But can she get him to see what’s right in front of his nose, or will his one-track mind be his downfall?

About Lexi Post

Lexi Post is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of sensuous romance inspired by the classics. She spent years in higher education taking and teaching courses about the classical literature she loved. From Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Masque of the Red Death” to Tolstoy’s War and Peace, she’s read, studied, and taught wonderful classics.

But Lexi’s first love is romance novels. So she decided to marry her two first loves by using the classics as a springboard for her romances. From hot paranormals to sizzling cowboys to hunks from out of this world, Lexi provides a sensuous experience with a “whole lotta story.”

Lexi is living her own happily ever after with her husband and her cat in Florida. She makes her own ice cream every weekend, loves bright colors, and you will never see her without a hat.

You can find her on her website, Instagram, Facebook, and Bookbub!