The Casual Vacancy - J.K. Rowling

The Casual Vacancy

By J.K. Rowling

  • Release Date: 2012-09-27
  • Genre: Fiction & Literature
Score: 3.5
3.5
From 2,824 Ratings
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Description

When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early forties, the little town of Pagford is left in shock.

Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.

Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils...Pagford is not what it first seems.

And the empty seat left by Barry on the town's council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen. Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?

Blackly comic, thought-provoking and constantly surprising, The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling's first novel for adults.

Reviews

  • A skillfully told story not for everybody

    4
    By drummer4gsus
    This is indeed an adult book. Rowling doesn’t fear any taboos in A Casual Vacancy. That is to say she says it straight and as life is with all its ugliness and flaws. This books is unique in that way among any others, to my knowledge. Rowling writes of human nature in such a way that pays respect to how the minute idiosyncrasies contribute to life (most of all social awkwardness and other small but important social dynamics that are often neglected in novels). The hang-ups would be the style the book is written in. For some people it’s fine, for others it isn’t. The biggest is perhaps the vast panoply of characters and the third-person view the book is written in. The narration floats from one character’s thoughts to another’s which can make it difficult at times to decipher which character a pronoun refers to and requires a little bit of a reread. But it is necessary to have this sort of point-of-view to tell a story with such fleshed out and interesting characters. So if you’re going to read this story, I’d recommend not taking long breaks in between sessions or you will forget who is who. The second issue is again stylistic. This one didn’t bother me so much but I’ve seen other reviews mention it. Rowling does something you don’t see often in fiction which is parenthesized paragraphs or more. That is to say that sometimes a character will be in a situation and it’ll remind them of something relevant that happened prior. The narration will then launch into a small sub story (almost like a flashback) within parenthesis. Again, I thought it was very interesting and quite true to how the inner dialogue of a person actually works. So for me, this was actually a pro which made the reading more intimate and human. Again, not for everybody. However, I will say that the story and narration are indelibly marked by skill and finesse.

  • Oof

    1
    By FoxFox37
    Nope

  • Return on Investment

    5
    By Adr713
    I tried reading this in 2012 and couldn’t get through it. For some reason, I decided why not try again? So I got through the first part, and as I got into uncharted territory, I found it better and better. The ending was heavy and quite good, solid even. This is the story of a small town where everyone knows each other. You might know of such a town near you, or you might even hail from one. There’s a good deal of setup for all of these people, these characters, and that’s where I find most people fall off the wagon. But it’s required reading. Once everyone begins to have their stories intermingle with one another, the story takes on an amazing new light. This is not an archetypical tale of good versus evil, but rather a shrunk-down view of the society we actively exist within. In each human character are prides and follies, and those often form the most volatile of this tale’s chemical reactions. I didn’t like many people at all in the beginning, but the people of Pagford grew on me much like my own neighbors have over time. By the end, it felt like a real place with real people. So if you’re looking for an unabashed slice of life, a telescope into raw honesty, then perhaps you’re due a visit to Pagford as well.

  • Wait

    5
    By the old Mr Hide
    Why JK change her nickname again?

  • The Casual Vacancy

    5
    By lhoshor
    This gave a face to economic and cultural divisions as they effect children from different walks of life. Though a tragedy, it manages to unite two diverse cultures in an ultimately important way. It offers hope that the next generation shall be wiser...

  • Csunsuzq

    5
    By Csunsuzq
    A very good read! This story of a small town reminded me of the small town I came from. Casual Vacancy shows all the angst of teenagers, all the good and the bad. The feelings Ms Rawlings brings out in her writing makes you feel like you know these people. I’ve also read the Cormorant Strike series by Ms Rawlings and had the same feelings about those books. Please keep writing more stories like these!!!

  • A bit of a chore

    3
    By Other sci-fi guy
    No, this is not a happy book and no, it's nothing like Harry Potter. Neither is a reason to fault a book and we all know the author is an accomplished writer but the shot gun like style of this book made it a chore for me to read. The reader needs to take in the identities any relationships of almost all of the 25 major and minor characters in the first few chapters. The narrative skips around quickly between vignettes make the use of pronouns problematic. All the way through the book I found myself asking "Which one is Tess married to and what's her kid's name? It's probably better on second reading but I'm exhausted and There are other books to read.

  • The Casual Vacancy

    1
    By Rocketgirl56
    I cannot believe this was written by the author who wrote the brilliant Harry Potter series! I have read the classics, and I believe that the Potter books will one day be listed among them. Therefore, it is with regret that I must rate this book as horrible. So many characters, as to be confusing. Action too slow moving. Time shifts make the story, if one can find it, too difficult to follow. One of the very few books ever that I could not finish. If I were you, Ms. Rowling, I would burn all copies.

  • Come on people,

    5
    By Experience the expert
    I give this five stars stars! It is a good book about romance and war! I know it's not the usual J.K Rowling book, with magic and evil and good, but just because the newspaper reported it was not much fun doesn't mean you should believe them!! I am a J.K Rowling fan, (does not mean I vote this because of this) because she has a,aging book and has a real talent for writing books I would just give this book a chance. It's 10.00 as a tablet form, and yes maybe it was a little expensive as a hard cover, but maybe the publisher just thought it would sell for that much because she is amazing at books!!!!!!!! One stars is a total down fall, at least give it a chance, and maybe you will see it's not so bad after all.😊😊

  • Amazing!

    5
    By maydayjuliet
    I recommend reading this book if you are a devoted Harry Potter fan. This story is a mystery about the mayor’s death and how it effects the town. J.K. Rowling does blind side you with the unexpected sex scenes, but it is a page turner, and it was hard putting it down due to the english language, I literally felt like I was in London! 5 stars! Fats is my favorite character by the way.

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