Gormenghast

Gormenghast, #2

by Mervyn Peake

Paperback, 512 pages

English language

Published Oct. 6, 2005 by VINTAGE (RAND).

ISBN:: 978-0-7493-9482-0

View on OpenLibrary

(18 reviews)

BOOK TWO OF THE CLASSIC GORMENGHAST TRILOGY

Titus Groan is seven. Heir to the crumbling castle, to a cobwebbed kingdom, he is also the inheritor of the evil now spreading through Gormenghast. Steerpike, who began his climb across the roofs when Titus was born, is now ascending the spiral staircase to the heart of the castle, and in his wake lie imprisonment, manipulation and murder.

Gormenghast is more than a sequel to Titus Groan - it is an enrichment and deepening of that book. The fertility of incident, character and rich atmosphere combine in a tour de force that ranks as one of the twentieth century's most remarkable feats of imaginative writing.

1 edition

phoebos reviewed Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake (Gormenghast, #2)

Review of "Gormenghast"

5 stars

I understand the reviews which criticise the dense verbosity of these books, but I disagree that this makes them not enjoyable. There are more descriptive sections, often at the beginning of chapters, which I only skimmed because they are plain description and scene-setting, which can be boring when I'm not in a mood to concentrate or read slowly. So, it's OK to read these couple of paragraphs less thoroughly. The descriptive language of these books are certainly their stand-out quality, but I think I gave 5 stars more so because of the plot and the characters. The plot in this second book was even more gripping than in the first.

Manzabar reviewed Gormenghast by Mervyn Peake (Gormenghast, #2)

Review of 'Gormenghast' on 'Goodreads'

1 star

Just couldn't get into the story at all. The thing it most reminded me of, in a vague way, was [b:The Silmarillion|7332|The Silmarillion|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1565193934l/7332.SX50.jpg|4733799]. Both felt overly wordy; but unlike The Silmarillion, I have no other experiences with Gormenghast to make me want to keep trying with it.