The Casual Vacancy by J K Rowling

A casual vacancy is deemed to have occurred:

(a)  when a local councillor fails to make his declaration of acceptance of office within the proper time;  or
(b)  when his notice of resignation is received;  or
(c)  on the day of his death...

(Charles Arnold-Baker, Local Council Administration, Seventh Edition)

Hardback:  A big novel about a small town, The Casual Vacancy is J K Rowling's first novel for adults.

When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the 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 facade 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?

About the author:  J K Rowling is the author of the bestselling Harry Potter series of seven books, published between 1997 and 2007, which have sold over 450 million copies worldwide, are distributed in more than 200 territories, have been translated into 73 languages and have been turned into eight blockbuster films.

As well as an OBE for services to children's literature, J K Rowling is the recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees, including the Prince of Asturias Award for Concord, France's Legion d'honneur, and the Hans Christian Andersen Award, and she has been a Commencement Speaker at Harvard University.  She supports a wide range of charitable causes and is the founder of Lumos, which works to transform the lives of disadvantaged children.

Here is the esteemed author in her first live appearance on the publication of The Casual Vacancy in September 2012:



Rating:  4/5