Titus Groan
by Mervyn Peake · first published 1946
69% recommend23% neutral8% critical
Why HN recommends it
Its extraordinary, richly rhythmic prose stands out. It is a gothic, slow-building fantasy set in a strange castle, suited to readers who value language over plot.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
This is the first of the Gormenghast trilogy and introduces the reader to Gormenghast Castle and its inhabitants. Lord Sepulchrave the Earl of Groan, his life an endless succession of meaningless rituals, Countess Gertrude, who spends her days secluded in her bedroom surrounded by cats and birds, her only source of pleasure. Their daughter Fuschia is there too, along with Sepulchrave’s eccentric twin sisters, Cora and Clarice and Mr. Flay, who leads Lord Sepulchrave through the interminable rituals of the castle. Into this world are thrust Titus, heir to the Earldom and Steerpike, a Machiavell
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2009–2026Gormenghast
Mervyn Peake
Recommended by 10 · mentioned by 1410 recommend · 14 mention10 recommend · 1410 recommend
2015–2026The worm Ouroboros
Eric Rücker Eddison
Recommended by 2 · mentioned by 82 recommend · 8 mention2 recommend · 82 recommend
2010–2026Little, Big
John Crowley
Recommended by 11 · mentioned by 1411 recommend · 14 mention11 recommend · 1411 recommend
2007–2026Book of the New Sun
Gene Wolfe
Recommended by 64 · mentioned by 9364 recommend · 93 mention64 recommend · 9364 recommend
2009–2024Sandman
Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, J. H. Williams III, Chris Bachalo
Recommended by 16 · mentioned by 3416 recommend · 34 mention16 recommend · 3416 recommend
2015–2026The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
Becky Chambers
Recommended by 24 · mentioned by 4024 recommend · 40 mention24 recommend · 4024 recommend
2008–2026The Name of the Wind
Patrick Rothfuss, Marc Simonetti
Recommended by 60 · mentioned by 9960 recommend · 99 mention60 recommend · 9960 recommend
2008–2026The Princess Bride
William Goldman
Recommended by 12 · mentioned by 3712 recommend · 37 mention12 recommend · 3712 recommend
Mervyn Peake writes very nice English prose that I think you might enjoy. See his Gormenghast series (Titus Groan, Gormenghast, Titus Alone). It's sort-of-fantasy but not really (no magic, no non-humans).
on “Middle-earth according to Mordor - The Lord of the Rings retold” ↗…least to me), so that might explain the lack of subtlety. Another great namer was Mervyn Peake, author of the fabulous "Gormenghast" series. From it, we have: Lord Sepulchrave Groan Fuschia Groan Titus Groan Steerpike Swelter, the enormous chef Dr. Alfred Prunesquallor Mr. Flay ...and too many more to mention. Any lovers of literary, surrealist grotesquerie should read this series.
on “What Kind of Name Is That? How to Name Fictional Characters” ↗In no particular order, except that #1 is #1. 1. Adventures of Huckelberry Finn 2. Little, Big 3. Winter's Tale 4. Titus Groan 5. Gormenghast 6. Titus Alone 7. Dune 8. The manuscript found in saragossa 9. The Three Musketeers 10. A Scanner Darkly 11. The Man in the High Castle 12. Do Androids dream of Electronic Sheep…
on “Ask HN: What is your favorite fiction book?” ↗…In direct opposition to your experience, I've recently started to actually read books, instead of just skimming them for the story. The balance was tipped by the first book of the Gormenghast trilogy "Titus Groan" by Mervyn Peake... really wonderful prose.
on “Why can't we concentrate?” ↗Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake (first part of the Gormenghast trilogy), because of the wonderful flowing prose. The Gay Science by Friedrich Nietzsche, because once I truly understood the full text of aphorism 125…
on “Ask HN: Please name two of your most favorite books.” ↗…Phantastes, Lilith, and The Golden Key, Eddison's Worm Ouroboros, Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, and that shattering, intolerable, and irresistible work, David Lindsay's Voyage to Arcturus. Also Mervyn Peake's Titus Groan.
on “Harold Bloom: Anti-Inkling?” ↗…hated most fantasy novels - the Harry Potter series in particular - so that's a noticeable endorsement. For an older fantasy series, you could also try Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy (starts with Titus Groan), which actually predates the Lord of the Rings and has a crowd that thinks it's better written. I think Neil Gaiman has worked on a TV series adaptation.
on “Ask HN: I only read tech/business books – recommend me some fiction?” ↗…It's classical magical surrealism, but it's a good story about a person's lifetime journey. Nothing deep, but it's wholesome. Edit: also will add A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller Jr., and Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake.
on “Ask HN: Works of fiction that have inspired you to solve programming problems?” ↗…cannot remember what occurred the previous day, so writes notes to himself. (Soldier of the Mist. Also rewarding once you figure out the name and location references.) An older classic: Mervyn Peake's Titus Groan is extraordinary in language, but also in the rhythm of sentences. Definitely one written to be read with a voice, not just internally. Perdido Street Station by China Mieville has dense prose. Wonderful…
on “To become a better writer, read as much as you can” ↗Omg, yes. I think that Titus Groan has got the most beautiful prose I've ever encountered. Well, that's what I thought when I read it years ago. I must revisit it.
on “Middle-earth according to Mordor - The Lord of the Rings retold” ↗The Book of the New Sun, Gene Wolfe Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, PKD Titus Groan, Mervyn Peake (the BBC miniseries was not good) Little, Big, John Crowley
on “Ask HN: Which fantasy and/or SF literary works you would like to see on screen?” ↗…contributing to the AI fatigue: The 4 GTP papers in order of publication. I'm also in the middle of the following: 1. Software Engineering at Google (O'Reilley) 2. The Worm Ouroboros by E. R. Eddison 3. Titus Groan by Mervyn Peake
on “Ask HN: Books to Read?” ↗I think it's contextual whether it's even wrong to pirate books. A new book that just came out? Sure. If I want to read a copy of "Titus Groan" by Mervyn Peake, who died in 1968, you'd have to do some marvelous convincing to make me feel bad about pirating it. Piracy would be wrong if the copyright system was reasonable. As is, it's the lesser…
on “Amazon now discloses you're buying a license to view Kindle eBooks” ↗The descriptions of the childe empower in the Forbidden City and scheming civil servants remind me very much of “Titus Groan” and “Gormenghast”. I need to check this book out.
on “Book Review: 1587, a Year of No Significance” ↗