The Casual Vacancy (JK Rowling's New Book)

Out 27th September

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 parish 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.

JK Rowling + Political Intrigue = AWESOME! :wub:

Sounds like the plot from a rushed out ITV drama made to fill an empty timeslot.

Pagford? What the hell kind of hastily made up name is that? :lol:

Lemme guess, Barry was MURDERED by an uber wizard.

I hope her next book is centred around someone called Larry.

No no no no no no...no.

Sounds strawberry floating awful.

Luckily most of her early readers are adults so they'll lap it up.

Judgement reserved.

Had to be thankful that she didn't get the temptation to create a Harry Potter spin-off.

But the initial impressions aren't that good, really. At least she doesn't have to worry about money, but her artistic side would probably get a knock if this isn't recieved well.

Like I said, i'll just wait and see.

Wedgie wrote:Had to be thankful that she didn't get the temptation to create a Harry Potter spin-off

That would've been much better than how this sounds.

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.

Just like everywhere then.

Tafdolphin wrote:
No no no no no no...no.

I'll reserve judgement for now, it could be good. I mean I never liked the sound of Harry Potter when I was younger, but when I read the first few books I really enjoyed them. Could be the same as this for me. Then again, it's going to have to be bloody brilliant if she hopes to recreate the sucess Harry Potter had. I'm not sure if she'll even try. Harry Potter went from nobody caring to almost a global phenomenom.

It sounds pretty small scale and the plot summary isn't "OMG awesome" by any means, but there could be enough intrigue in there to make it a pretty good novel. Interested in the black comedy angle - Rowling has never been particularly funny in her writing, imo.

Frank wrote:I hope her next book is centred around someone called Larry.

Reminded slightly of Little Britain's Dame Sally.

Lagamorph wrote:Sounds like the plot from a rushed out ITV drama made to fill an empty timeslot.

Hey it might be good. You never know.

You know what, good on her for not doing something massively overblown. Although I'm not particularly grabbed by the premise, it's the perfect way to segue into adult fiction.

No other writer in the world could publish a book led by a man called 'Barry Fairweather' in 'Pagford'. Just awful, awful names.

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Lagamorph wrote:Sounds like the plot from a rushed out ITV drama made to fill an empty timeslot.

I like your way of thinking.

Lagamorph wrote:Sounds like the plot from a rushed out ITV drama made to fill an empty timeslot.

I think it's a plot from Midsomer Murders. :lol:

Going to pre-order this tomorrow I think.

Barry Fairweather and the Pagford Mystery.

The Casual Vacancy (JK Rowling's New Book)

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