Tolkien, but his surreal fiction was influenced by his early love for Charles Dickens and Robert Louis Stevenson rather than Tolkien's studies of mythology and philology.

They are sometimes compared to the work of his older contemporary J.R.R. He is best known for what are usually referred to as the Gormenghast books, though the Titus books would be more accurate: the three works that exist were the beginning of what Peake conceived as a lengthy cycle, following his protagonist Titus Groan from cradle to grave, but Peake's untimely death prevented completion of the cycle, which is now commonly but erroneously referred to as a trilogy. My edition has an introduction by Anthony Burgess and was published in 1989 by Mandarin.Mervyn Laurence Peake was an English modernist writer, artist, poet and illustrator. I recommend it if you’re a fan of gothic fiction and enjoy language.įirst published in 1946. Titus Groan is not an easy read, having some unusual words and being somewhat Dickensian in its character descriptions. Maeve Gilmore (the author’s wife) preferred it not to be corrected in later editions. Apparently Peake knew of his mistake and wasn’t bothered by it. Most readers will notice it, I think, although the editor obviously didn’t. There is a well-known error in the book the first name of Doctor Prunesquallor starts off as Alfred and then changes to Bernard. The struggles for power within the castle, the crumbling walls, the conflict between generations and the sudden outbursts of violence take on another meaning. He was conscripted, had a breakdown and then used his artistic talent for the war effort. However, consider that Mervyn Peake wrote it during the Second World War. The book is best categorised as fantasy and you can leave it at that. Slow paced with lengthy descriptions, the enjoyment is in the fantastic language and the eccentric characters. For a 500 page novel, there isn’t much plot to speak of (which explains how the 2000 BBC TV adaptation covered it in just two episodes).

A clever and malevolent young man, Steerpike, aims to claw his way to power in the castle.

Set in the ancient and decaying castle of Gormenghast, the story follows events which occur after the birth of Titus, 77th Earl of Groan. Mysterious, tragic, funny and playfully gothic, the first book in the Gormenghast series is an impressive piece of literary fiction. And dreams, and violence, and disenchantment.’

Fierce births and deaths beneath umbrageous ceilings. ‘There would be tears and there would be strange laughter.

Groan mervyn peake novel