Gormenghast (Gormenghast #2) by Mervyn Peake

Format: Audio (Audible)
Read: October 2026

Life in the great castle continues; Titus grows from a boy to almost a man as Steerpike continues his rise to power alongside the growing suspicions of Dr Prunesquallor and the Countess Gertrude. There is so much that happens in this I had to double-check a synopsis that it was all the same book!

I enjoyed this just as much as the first book, perhaps even more. It is much more action-packed, and the tension really ramps up as Steerpike’s schemes have an increasing body count. What I really like about this is that despite his almost superhuman (or, at least unnatural in the environs of Gormenghast) ruthless intellect and ambition, he is not infallible. He makes mistakes; he overestimates his own abilities and underestimates others… and maybe he isn’t completely sane.

Steerpike’s eventual downfall was satisfying and exhilarating! It was written in a remarkably realistic fashion – this isn’t a simple heroic story where Titus defeats the villain and saves Gormenghast. It’s scrappy and messy; motivations are clouded with grief, and the will to survive makes some people very hard to kill.

There is a lot of sadness and tragedy in this story, but it is balanced by some lighter moments of silliness. This mainly comes from the introduction of school and the staff of professors, a collection of awkward misfits who are akin to overgrown schoolboys. The highlight of the book for me was Irma Prunesquallor deciding she wants to marry and invite the entire staff of 40 male professors to a party. It was weird, funny, awkward, and her courtship with Bellgrove was romantic and very touching in its honesty. I love late-in-life love!

I found Titus himself quite annoying because I didn’t really understand him, but then he is a teenage boy. I recognise he is struggling against his duties, the endless rituals, as the Earl of Gormenghast. He longs for freedom and adventure, and has been escaping the castle to explore the forests outside. I didn’t really understand his reactions to meeting The Thing (why so aggressive and grabby) and the significance of it so something to pay attention to more when I reread this in print.

I’ll leave it at this because I plan to re-read the whole trilogy in print; the audio versions are brilliant, Saul Reichlin is fantastic, but I can’t do a deeper reading that way!

For Law of Fives, this is a second book in a series.