Gormenghast (series) the outside world is implied; Dr. Prunesquallor at one point sketches an ostrich skeleton, while Steerpike procures a monkey from somewhere. Otherwise, the impression given is that Gormenghast is stagnant, insular, and introspective. A recurring theme is the time-consuming and pointless rituals that the inhabitants submit to regularly, the origin and purpose of which is long-forgotten. Gormenghast makes a stark contrast with the industrious and technologically advanced city, which is the setting of "Titus Alone". The story begins with the birth of the eponymous Titus, as the heir to the throne of the House of Groan, and finishes just over
Titus Awakes Titus Awakes Titus Awakes is the editorial title applied to a novel being planned by Mervyn Peake at the time he became too ill to write, about 1960. It was to have been the fourth novel in the Gormenghast series, after "Titus Groan", "Gormenghast", and "Titus Alone". "Titus Awakes" remains unfinished, as the author succumbed to illness before the work could be completed. In the 1970s Peake's widow, Maeve Gilmore, wrote a version of "Titus Awakes" to which she gave the title "Search Without End". It runs to 65,000 words, as counted on the typescript that she asked Peter Winnington