Vintage buys Gormenghast sequel discovered in loft
05.02.10 | Benedicte Page in The Bookseller

Vintage has acquired a recently-uncovered fourth novel to follow Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast trilogy, which was written by Peake's widow, Maeve Gilmore. Titus Awakes was acquired by Vintage Classics editorial director Laura Hassan from Caroline Michel at PFD, with UK and Commonwealth rights bought in a "significant" deal for an undisclosed sum. Vintage is already the home of the trilogy.

Gilmore penned Titus Awakes following Peake's death in 1968, basing it on a page and a half of fragmented notes left by the author. The manuscript was recently unearthed from a box in the attic of Peake's granddaughter's home.
The book continues the story of the Titus, the 77th Earl of Groan, following the events related in Titus Groan, Gormenghast and Titus Alone. Peake's son Sebastian said his father had in fact intended to write a whole series of books charting his character's life from cradle to grave, and that the Peake family was "overjoyed" that Vintage would be publishing Titus Awakes which he described as "an eloquent finale" to the series.

Vintage will publish in July 2011, on time for the centenary of Peake's birth, alongside a luxury illustrated hardback edition of the Gormenghast trilogy, containing previously unseen drawings by Peake, and a reissue of Mr Pye.