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The Gormenghast Novels (Paperback)

by Mervyn Peake (Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (116 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Mervyn Peake's gothic masterpiece, the Gormenghast trilogy, begins with the superlative Titus Groan, a darkly humorous, stunningly complex tale of the first two years in the life of the heir to an ancient, rambling castle. The trilogy continues with the novels Gormenghast and Titus Alone, and all three books are bound together in this single-volume edition.

The Gormenghast royal family, the castle's decidedly eccentric staff, and the peasant artisans living around the dreary, crumbling structure make up the cast of characters in these engrossing stories. Peake's command of language and unique style set the tone and shape of an intricate, slow-moving world of ritual and stasis:

"The walls of the vast room which were streaming with calid moisture, were built with gray slabs of stone and were the personal concern of a company of eighteen men known as the 'Grey Scrubbers'.... On every day of the year from three hours before daybreak until about eleven o'clock, when the scaffolding and ladders became a hindrance to the cooks, the Grey Scrubbers fulfilled their hereditary calling."

Peake has been compared to Dickens, Tolkien, and Peacock, but the Gormenghast trilogy is truly unique. Unforgettable characters with names like Steerpike and Prunesquallor make their way through an architecturally stifling world, with lots of dark corners around to dampen any whimsy that might arise. This true classic is a feast of words unlike anything else in the world of fantasy. Those who explore Gormenghast castle will be richly rewarded. --Therese Littleton

Review
This is the first complete, single-volume paperback edition of the restored novels and includes twelve critical essays and an unfinished fourth novel. As the divided paperbacks of previous years are proving increasingly hard to come by, this will prove a far superior edition for many newcomers, presenting the poetic fantasy trilogy in a single-cover format which makes the entire sequence easier to digest. -- Midwest Book Review

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Product Details

Paperback: 1168 pages
Publisher: Overlook TP (December 1, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0879516283
ISBN-13: 978-0879516284
Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 2.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (116 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #96,343 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories: (What's this?)
#2 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( P ) > Peake, Mervyn
#68 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British > 20th Century

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover

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Rebel Bookseller: How to Improvise Your Own Indie Store and Beat Back the Chains by Andrew Laties in Back Matter

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	73% buy the item featured on this page: The Gormenghast Novels 4.5 out of 5 stars (116) $19.77
	15% buy Titus Groan 4.2 out of 5 stars (59) $10.85
	5% buy Titus Alone (Book three of Gormenghast Trilogy) 3.8 out of 5 stars (10) $10.17
	4% buy Gormenghast (Book Two of the Gormenghast Trilogy) 4.5 out of 5 stars (2) $11.96

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Customer Reviews

116 Reviews

5 star:		(87)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(5)

Average Customer Review

4.5 out of 5 stars (116 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

121 of 129 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dive in, but mind that last step., August 15, 2000

By	J. T. Nite "mightybjorn" (Mesa, AZ USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The first two Gormenghast novels are unlike any other books I've ever read. They seem to be fantasy, set in a huge crumbling castle and involving a huge, crumbling aristocratic family. But unlike most fantasy, there's no quest -- no saving the princess, no strange journey, not much of a plot to speak of.

It's less reading than pure immersion -- you sink into this castle and its characters, follow them about their daily lives, get to know them and the castle. Peake's prose is intensely visual; he's an eloquent tour guide, pointing out the strange sights and marvels around every corner.

There is a plot, of course, but it moves slowly across the two books, detailing a scheming kitchen boy's rise to power in the decaying monarchy. As I said before, the plot's not the point -- the characters, the atmosphere, the *experience* are what will keep you reading. I've never lived in a book like I did with these.

Unfortunately, the last (and shortest) of the trilogy takes a different tack with much less success. "Titus Alone" follows the heir to the Gormenghast throne as he leaves the castle and ventures into the world. Peake makes two major mistakes: he leaves behind the castle, which is the main character in the previous books, and he focuses on the picaresque plot instead of Titus' character. A little science fiction also creeps in, and seems wildly out of place. "Titus Alone" is just a series of sometimes amusing scenes. They don't develop Titus' character or introduce us to any memorable people -- a stark contrast to the first two novels, which are full of strange and wondrous folk.

The notes in the edition I have say that Peak hadn't finished Titus Alone when he died, and that his estate edited it for publication, so that may explain its inferiority.

My disapointment in the last book, however, doesn't affect my love for the first two. Definitely pick up these books and dive into Peake's strange world -- but mind the shallow water at the end.

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67 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Lure of Gormenghast, January 14, 2000

By	Carl Miffleton - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Titus Groan" by Mervyn Peake is among the greatest works rendered in the English language. It is a work of fantasy, yet resembles nothing that came before it or since. Although this masterpiece is acknowledged by critics and a coterie of obsessed readers (such as myself), it is, sadly, almost unknown in the United States. It is,perhaps, too British or too eccentric. Gormenghast is an ancient castle, about the size of a city, which, as far as we know, is the only thing on the planet. Having no known point of reference to the world we know gives the novel its characteristic unreality-- its surreal atmosphere. The characters are uniformly grotesque: the taciturn, cadaver-like Mr. Flay, the vulgar and grossly obese Swelter, the slightly deformed yet brilliant villain Steerpike. Titus is the heir to Gormenghast-- the seventy-seventh earl of Groan-- and this is his story (although the first book of three ends with the hero only two years old). The focus is on the visual descriptions, and the world of Gormenghast is vividly shown through Peake's breathtaking command of the language. Peake was a graphic artist by profession and his skill with paint and pencil somehow translates into images that resonate in the reader's mind long after he or she has finished reading. Ultimately, it is impossible to shake the experience of visiting Peake's imaginary world. I read this book for the first time at age 17 (I'm now 42) and have been haunted by it since. Gormenghast is like a nightmare world and no sane person would ever want to live there; yet, how strangely beautiful and compelling it is! Gormenghast draws one back to it time and time again. It is what I call "the lure of Gormenghast." "Titus Groan" and its sequels "Gormenghast" and "Titus Alone" comprise the Gormenghast Trilogy. These books will most likely have to be ordered through Amazon.com or some other service, but the trouble is well worth it. For anyone who loves the English language and its endless possibilities, the Gormenghast Trilogy is exquisitely essential.

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32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Book Ever Written?, January 7, 1997

By A Customer

For sheer, sustained, imaginative power; an unfailing attention to character detail (Dickens' caricatures had none of this realism); a brooding, dark humour that goes deeper than any other work I can think of against a backdrop of unimaginably stifling rigidity and routine, Gormenghast has not been bettered by anyone in any genre. Full-stop. Titus Groan acts almost as an appetizer for the grandeur of the second in the trilogy. The immensity of the crumbling castle, it's labyrinthine corridors, rooms and even roofs is conveyed by Mervyn Peake with such believability that it's image never leaves you, even years after it's read. Yet it is the goings-on within it's grey walls that leave the greatest impression. I can still see the scheming Steerpike, the sour Fuschia, Swelter the cook, the Prunesquallors and Titus 77th Earl of Groan as clearly as if I'd just met them. One can almost feel the stifling grip the castle holds over Titus as he struggles to break free of the asphyxiating tradition of his home. To even try to convey what this trilogy is about would be trite and pointless. The odd world of Gormenghast has to be experienced. Read them and be changed.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Literary Equivalent of Stanley Kubrick (PATIENCE REQUIRED)
Having read all the 1 and 2 star reviews posted here...I am forced to conclude that the negative reviews are more a reflection of the reviewers' general lack of patience and... Read more

Published 1 month ago by T. Van Koevering

4.0 out of 5 stars Have fun storming the Castle
Titus Groan/Gormenghast/Titus Alone;Introductory essays by Anthony Burgess and Quentin Crisp, critical assessments following. Read more

Published 9 months ago by Todd Stockslager

5.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly influential for its time.
I found these novels in the late eighties when they were out of print. The first two in the series, particularly, are some of the most imaginative books I have ever read... Read more

Published 10 months ago by Lisa M. Mims

5.0 out of 5 stars the gormenghast novels
a wonderful book. Read it many years ago and it brought back pleasant memories. An inspired author.

Published 14 months ago by Greg S. Starke

5.0 out of 5 stars "A Fairy-tale with no Fairies"
A contemporary of Peake described Titus Groan as "a fairy-tale with no fairies", and nothing could summarize the trilogy more succinctly. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Octoworm

2.0 out of 5 stars Verbose
Bought this after seeing >100 reviews @ 4.5 stars. Glad I got it used.

The author never met an adjective or adverb he didn't like. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Dr. Fell

4.0 out of 5 stars Fresh even though not new
This trilogy often gets compared with The Lord of the Rings, but I'd say it resembles Shadow of the Torturer more. Read more

Published 16 months ago by Eric A. Burr

5.0 out of 5 stars A picturesque canvas of words...
This novel contains one of the most rich and detailed setting and atmosphere that will hold firm your imagination. Read more

Published 18 months ago by Y. C. Perez

2.0 out of 5 stars A Meandering Tale Where Nothing Happens
Most people that rated these stories on Amazon seem to really like them. I did not. The stories went nowhere. Read more

Published 20 months ago by Joseph McDonough

5.0 out of 5 stars Unique, Eccentric Masterpieces of Fantasy
Nothing exists to prepare the reader for Mervyn Peake's world. If one were to room with Dickens and Edward Gorey at a castle in Middle-Earth, the experience would almost suffice;... Read more

Published 21 months ago by sollipsist

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