The Last Keeper by J.V. Hilliard
From Rings of Power to House of the Dragon, from Stephen King’s Fairy Tale to the latest Brandon Sanderson books — the fantasy genre is seeing a massive resurgence. If you’ve been searching for your next sweeping, high fantasy read, author J.V. Hilliard has just the book for you. The first of the Warminster series, The Last Keeper shines with its multi-faceted characters, an engaging magic system and a classic, immersive world full of rich detail.
In his interview, Hilliard shares how J.R.R. Tolkien has been a huge source of inspiration since early childhood. The echoes of such inspiration, along with other legendary pieces of media, can certainly be felt in The Last Keeper. Check out our full review of the novel here, and continue reading below to see what exactly went in to creating the enchanting world of the Warminster series.
Q: How would you best describe the story of The Last Keeper?
A: The Last Keeper is book one in a four-book saga, introducing readers to the mystical realm of Warminster, revealing the magic, mystery and monsters of a classical fantasy world. Daemus Alaric, one of the book’s heroes, faces down his own fears and fights to save his sect from a returning and vengeful member of their prophet society. Finding unexpected help from an elven princess-sorceress and a trollborn archer, they struggle to save the realm and face the menace that threatens their very existence. Can they defeat the forces of evil before it’s too late?
Q: How did you become interested in the Epic Fantasy genre?
A: I’ve long been a fan of both Epic and Dark Fantasy. In fourth grade, my teacher read us The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and instantly I was a fan of the genre. That Christmas, my uncle bought me my own copy as a gift and my first box set of Dungeons & Dragons, which we began to play together. From there, I absorbed fantasy in all its forms, but always prefer the high fantasy of Tolkien over most.
Q: What is your writing process like? Do you know where the characters and story are going in advance or do you let them lead you as you go?
A: I am a classic “plotter,” so yes, I know every angle to my stories before I write. I have a large whiteboard in my den which I use to plan characters, intersect plots, and develop story lines. Then I write the story backward, reverse engineering the novel to ensure each piece of the plot is accounted for. I often tease people that ask me this question that there is no wasted space in my writing. If a detail appears, it means something or is important to the plot — now or later.
Q: You created such a fully formed fantasy world that is so believable with multi-dimensional characters that really come to life for the reader. Where do you get your ideas?
A: I’ve taken much inspiration as a twenty-plus year tabletop role playing gamer, with most of my time spent playing Dungeons & Dragons, Robotech, Star Wars or even games my friends and I created. Some of my characters in The Last Keeper are born from my campaigns as a dungeon master or were old characters and villains my group faced as part of game play. The realm itself is a “Frankenstein monster” of all the realms I’ve created, stitched together in Warminster. Seeing them come to life in the novels is a fun way of memorializing them for my friends and family.
Q: Did you have any real-life inspirations for your characters including Daemus Alaric and Princess Addilyn?
A: The inspiration for Daemus came from a set of recurring nightmares I had as a late teen and into my early adulthood, just like the young Keeper. Instead of seeing Graytorris the Mad however, I saw a spectral figure, claiming to be my guardian angel, asking me to complete tasks for “us” in my waking hours. Scary stuff, even as an adult.
Princess Addilyn was designed more from my professional time as a DC lobbyist, working through the machinations of government, diplomatic relationships and cultural protocols. I set her in motion as a “stranger in a strange land,” learning how to deal with multiple cultures simultaneously during a pending world crisis.
Q: What’s next in The Warminster Series? What can readers look forward to?
A: Book two, Vorodin’s Lair, will be released by my publisher, Dragon Moon Press, in September of 2022, with the third book, The Trillias Gambit, being released just before the holidays. The final installment in the saga, Echoes of Ghostwood, is slated for release in the second quarter of 2023. And for fans of video games, I have licensed the intellectual property of the Realm of Warminster to an augmented reality/virtual reality gaming company which will release the first version of its product in late 2023.
About J.V. Hilliard:
Born of steel, fire and black wind, J.V. Hilliard was raised as a highlander in the foothills of a once-great mountain chain on the confluence of the three mighty rivers that forged his realm’s wealth and power for generations. His father, a peasant twerg, toiled away in industries of honest labor and instilled in him a work ethic that would shape his destiny. His mother, a local healer, cared for his elders and his warrior uncle, who helped to raise him during his formative years. His genius brother, whose wizardly prowess allowed him to master the art of the abacus and his own quill, trained with him for battles on fields of green and sheets of ice. Hilliard’s earliest education took place in his warrior uncle’s tower, where he learned his first words. HIs uncle helped him to learn the basics of life — and, most importantly, creative writing. Hilliard’s training and education readied him to lift a quill that would scribe the tale of the realm of Warminster, filled with brave knights, harrowing adventure and legendary struggles. He lives in the city of silver cups, hypocycloids and golden triangles with his wife, a ranger of the diamond. They built their castle not far into the countryside, guarded by his own two horsehounds, Thor and MacLeod, and resides there to this day.
