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Titus Groan

The Gormenghast Trilogy, Book 1

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Titus Groan

By: Mervyn Peake
Narrated by: Rupert Degas
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Deep in the labyrinthine corridors of Gormenghast Castle, a child is born. Titus, 77th Earl of Groan, is heir to arcane and all-embracing rituals that determine the activities of everyone from Lord Sepulchrave, his father, to the vast cook, Swelter, and the irrepressible Dr Prunesquallor. But not the steely and devious Steerpike, who will lie, cheat and even murder to get on.

One of the greatest feats of sustained imaginative writing, the world of Gormenghast Castle is brilliantly realised in this darkly fantastic novel. It's rich description and vivid characters make it one of the most enduringly popular works of the 20th century.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©1973 Mervyn Peake (P)2011 Naxos AudioBooks Classics Epic Epic Fantasy Fantasy Fiction Gothic Horror Scary

Editor reviews

Enter the world of Gormenghast - a vast, meandering city reminiscent of London or Byzantium. New to U.S. audiences, Peake's trilogy, aired on BBC Television in 2000, created a cult following in the UK. Rupert Degas acts out all the parts of this gothic novel with extreme characterizations, based on the BBC show, contrasted with lengthy spates of narrative. On the day Titus, 77th Earl of Gormenghast, is born, a young upstart named Steerpike escapes his hereditary kitchen job to change his life and fortunes. Steerpike encounters many characters, who get bold treatment from narrator Degas. The thick accents and dialogue take some getting used to, especially in the early scenes. Nonetheless, Gormenghast fans will love Degas's performance.
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The opening book in the series sets the scene at Gormenghast and tells the tale of mundanity fascinating only to the officials in charge and us the readers.

A good start to a classic series of novels

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Whilst it took a bit of getting into, I very much enjoyed the story and the performance grew on me.

Very interesting

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The reader brought the world of Steeerpike et al brilliantly to life - a wonderful adventure

Brilliant reading

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I love this book, and enjoyed the performance, but having read the book several times I realised part way through that this is a shortened version of the text. I didn't spot that anywhere on the listing. To edit this book is to remove the opulent and delicious descriptive prose it is loved for. Disappointing.

A bridged version?

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I will never look at an owl in the same way again. great voice acting and a really good intro into the series. the writing is breathtaking.

wow

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