July 2010 Guest Editor Marcus Sedgwick explains why this book inspires him: "When I grew up a bit, my dad bought me a second hand copy of Gormenghast, the middle book in this trilogy, and somehow knowing I was going to love it, I waited until I could get the first book, Titus Groan, before I started to read. And I did love it: I'd never read anything so strange and dark and beautiful and when I finished the last book, I didn't know what to do except to start writing myself."
Gormenghast is the vast, crumbling castle to which the seventy-seventh Earl, Titus Groan, is lord and heir. Titus is expected to rule this gothic labyrinth of turrets and dungeons, and his eccentric and wayward subjects, according to strict age-old rituals, but things are changing in the castle. Titus must contend with treachery, manipulation and murder as well as his own longing for a life beyond the castle walls.
This epic trilogy centring on Titus, 77th Earl of Groan and heir to the delapidated castle of Gormenghast, is an imaginative tour de force. The novels are peopled with a host of memorable characters such as Titus's sister Fuchsia and the crafty Steerpike, while the shadowy, monstrous castle itself surrounded by the mud huts of the 'outer dwellings are brilliantly created. These gothic fantasy novels were written between 1946 and 1959, and British author Peake also provided the evocative illustrations. Kirkus UK
Author
About Mervyn Peake
Mervyn Peake was born in 1911. He is perhaps most famous for the ‘Gormenghast’ trilogy which were published between 1946 and 1959 - Titus Groan, Gormenghast and Titus Alone. He has also written a book for children, Captain Slaughterboard Drops Anchor and several volumes of poetry. He was also a gifted book illustrator. He died in 1968.
