• The Casual Vacancy

  • By: J.K. Rowling
  • Narrated by: Tom Hollander
  • Length: 17 hrs and 51 mins
  • 3.6 out of 5 stars (6,919 ratings)

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The Casual Vacancy  By  cover art

The Casual Vacancy

By: J.K. Rowling
Narrated by: Tom Hollander
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Publisher's summary

When Barry Fairweather dies unexpectedly in his early 40s, 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 at 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.

©2012 J.K. Rowling (P)2012 Hachette Audio
J.K. Rowling - Author

About the Author

J.K. Rowling is the author of the record-breaking, multi-award-winning Harry Potter novels. Loved by fans around the world, the series has sold more than 500 million copies, been translated into 80 languages and made into eight blockbuster films.

She has written three companion volumes in aid of charity: Quidditch Through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (in aid of Comic Relief and Lumos), and The Tales of Beedle the Bard (in aid of Lumos).

In 2012, J.K. Rowling's digital company and digital publisher Pottermore was launched, a place where fans can enjoy the latest news from across the wizarding world, features and original writing by J.K. Rowling.

Her first novel for adult readers, The Casual Vacancy, was published in September 2012 and adapted for TV by the BBC in 2015. J.K. Rowling also writes crime novels under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, featuring private detective Cormoran Strike. The first four novels The Cuckoo's Calling (2013), The Silkworm (2014), Career of Evil (2015) and Lethal White (2018) all topped the national and international bestseller lists. The first three have been adapted for television, produced by Brontë Film and Television.

J.K. Rowling's 2008 Harvard commencement speech was published in 2015 as an illustrated book, Very Good Lives: The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination, and sold in aid of Lumos and university-wide financial aid at Harvard.

In 2016, J.K. Rowling collaborated with writer Jack Thorne and director John Tiffany on the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One and Two, which is now running at The Palace Theatre in London's West End and at The Lyric Theatre on Broadway.

Also in 2016, J.K. Rowling made her screenwriting debut with the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. A prequel to the Harry Potter series, this new adventure of Magizoologist Newt Scamander marked the start of a five-film series to be written by the author. The second film in the series, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald was released in November 2018.

The script book of the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts One and Two was published in 2016. The original screenplays of the Fantastic Beasts films are published too: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016) and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018).

As well as receiving an OBE and Companion of Honour for services to children's literature, J.K. Rowling has received many awards and honours, including France's Légion d'Honneur and the Hans Christian Andersen Award.

www.jkrowling.com

Image: Photography Debra Hurford Brown © J.K. Rowling 2018

What listeners say about The Casual Vacancy

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Pagford upon Avon

Or perhaps a better title for my review would be: You don’t have S3X near unicorns. In some ways this novel seems like a more middleweight 21st century counterpoint to Martin Amis' novel 'Money'. J.K. Rowling's new "adult" novel could just as easily been titled 'Poverty' or 'Mortality' (sorry J.K., but Hitch beat you to that title), both of which are themes that play throughout this novel.

It is weird for me, as a reader of all her juvenile fiction, to think of her in the same way with 'Casual Vacancy'. It appears it is hard for J.K. too. Rowling clearly is strongly connected to young adults, because the best parts of 'The Casual Vacancy' orbit the novel's younger characters.

In 'Casual Vacancy', Rowling falls back into writing about factions and tribalism in communities. Instead of a sorting hat, Pagford's tribes are sorted by money, by politics, by class, and in the case of those around Barry Fairweather -- by luck. It really seems like you can't write about England's poverty or class struggles without a little bit of dark humor and tragicomedy.

But, there is a real danger in writing a novel your loyal readers might not be ready for. We are creatures of habit and expectation. Go back and ask Melville how his loyal followers liked Moby Dick. I am positive that there will be scores of readers that will be upset, disenchanted, and disallusioned with Rowling's new book. But that is OK. In a greater way that is probably just what JK wants and expects (obviously on top of being read).

The British actor Tom Hollander's participation in the audiobook was a brilliant (seriously brillaint) move. The tecture of his voice is easy, lyrical and clear. He is able to subtly voice the many shades and variations of English class (Ruth and her husband Simon are good examples of his deft reading). The clarity and crispness of his voice also makes this an audiobook that you can listen to ALMOST as easily at 2x speed as 1x speed (although as an American, I didn't dare listen to it for long at 3x speed).

I'm not sure I would call it a great book (sorry folks, it isn't 'Bleak House' or 'Les Miserables'), but neither my money/credit nor my time was wasted listening to it.

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352 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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I was surprised by how much I liked it

I read Rowling's other non-Potter book (the one she wrote under a pseudonym) and found it entertaining but mediocre. I expected the same reaction to this one and had therefore put off listening to it. When I did, I was totally surprised by how much I liked it. So much so that I laid in bed until well past two in the morning listening to the end (something I rarely do)--ergo the five stars even though this is not 'high' literature.

The Casual Vacancy is a story about the dark hidden lives of the inhabitants of a small country town. (Yes, not a very original theme but so very well done by Rowling.) The characters are dark, Very dark. Sometimes their meanness astounds you. In fact, they are all mean, except in varying degrees -- the only 'solid' good guy appears to be the character who dies in the first few pages of the book, leaving "the casual vacancy" in the town's council. (Had he lived, no doubt we would have found he had his secrets as well. Nobody is blameless here.)

The things that happen as a result of the characters inner flaws and demons are catastrophic, but easy to believe. In fact, Rowling makes them seem inevitable. A train without brakes going downhill.

I hope she writes more novels like this. And I hope Tom Hollander reads them. I will be sure to listen.

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Read reviews before you purchase

What disappointed you about The Casual Vacancy?

The story was extremely depressing & slow. I almost fell asleep while driving. The narrator is probably good, but there's not much he could do with this story. I read lots of English novels...not just Harry Potter. I love JK Rowling, but this is just not up to her standards. I tried to plod through, but after starting the 2nd download, I just had to quit.

What could J. K. Rowling have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

It was just a very depressing & slow story overall

How did the narrator detract from the book?

He was good, it just wasn't good material.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Not really. I wasn't expecting all the bad language.

Any additional comments?

I wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't.

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106 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

This is not a magical book, it can't be.

Oscar Wilde's famous line "The good end happily and the bad unhappily, that is what fiction means" sums up the hero's journey that is the Harry Potter series. Inventive and imaginative, the reader enters a world that could never be, and encounters characters full of the greatest attributes of mankind: kindness, loyalty and courage prime among them. Goodness inevitably triumphs over evil, and the victory is won by not a single hero, but a band of friends exhibiting humanity at its best.

Humanity is not at its best in "The Casual Vacancy", far from it. Readers who found it exhilarating to imagine themselves soaring through the air on a broomstick or a hippogriff are rudely dropped onto the hard asphalt of contemporary class and racial bias. It is not a pretty sight or enjoyable experience. It is not meant to be.

I responded the same way many readers did by realizing that there isn't a single character that is not deeply flawed, and in many ways, unlikeable. The one person we would actually like to have as a friend dies at the outset of the book, and even he has imperfect relationships with those closest to him. His presence created equilibrium between warring factions driven by prejudice and mistrust. His death upsets the balance and begins a cascade of events which ends in tragedy. A more hopeful book would have the characters experience epiphanies which would change them internally and the world around them externally.

But this is not a hopeful book. I don't think it was meant to be. The author masterfully weaves the strands of the plot until all the characters have to look at themselves deeply if they are capable of it. Many of them are not, and are not changed by the losses they experience. This is where fantasy and reality collide, good is not going to triumph over evil, and that is depressing and heartbreaking.

The point, I believe, is that complex problems do not have easy answers, and sometimes have no answers at all. The Potter series is about finding the hidden power within you. This book is about the hidden powerlessness we feel as a society when confronted by the fear of those who are not like us. While we have best of intentions, our fear triumphs over our desire to do the right thing.

I believe Ms. Rowling's intent was to make us think deeply about intractable problems, and I think she was successful in doing so. It is not an enjoyable read, but it is an important one. It makes us uncomfortable, this time she didn't want to entertain us with fantasy, but to give us a big dose of reality as seen by a skilled storyteller.

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    4 out of 5 stars

Skippy Dies in Marriage Plot on Coronation St

I mean that in a good way. I've never read or seen a Potter, but love witty light Brit lit. This IS a fun listen, though some of the characters and observations are mean-spirited. This also does a novel's job - observes and comments on the human condition, so although light, it is in the tradition (though not same fighting class) of a Trollope or Austen - keen observation of daily life beyond the surface, and well-expressed. Rowling makes even a journey across a parking lot interesting, and the narrator is A+

I downloaded this only out of curiosity and lost a night's sleep because I couldn't stop listening. If you like story-telling and don't need a happy -ever-after resolution, this may be for you. If you like sparse, taught prose and postmodern-y novels, maybe skip it.

I usually avoid novels with adolescent characters and their concerns, but. like Paul Murray, Rowling makes even that age group interesting for me. (Sorry if that sounds ageist; I'm a self-absorbed babyboomer - and we're in the novel too)

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Rowling can create despicable as well as loveable

When I finished listening to this book I immediately wanted to talk about it. My initial feeling was one of bafflement, mostly because, while this book was not what I consider "enjoyable" by most of the definitions I use for that word - I did enjoy it.

I tend to be drawn to books that will allow me to disappear into them. I want to escape from reality and inhabit a different world for a while, fall in love, have grand adventures, make new friends. This was not the book for any of that. Instead The Casual Vacancy keeps you right here in "the real world". More than that, it shines an unforgiving light into all of the dingiest, ugliest, saddest and most tragic corners of the world and introduces you to a whole town full of despicable, ugly and tragic characters and it does it in a gorgeous way. The world is painted with the skilled brushes of JK Rowlings fantastic command of language and brilliant story-telling.

This is the first Tom Hollander narration that I have listened to. I have listened to A Lot of audiobooks though, and have experienced that a narrator can make or break a book in audio format. I enjoyed Tom Hollander very much.

Like the rest of the world, I became a fan of the author through the charming and magical world she created with Harry Potter. Those audiobooks are some of my absolute favorites. I have listened to them over and over - they are a great thing to just throw on when I am bored and have nothing new to listen to. It has been my experience that JK Rowling's books have many and unexpected layers, so I WILL be listening to this book again once it has had a bit more time to digest in my head, though I don't see it going onto my list of often repeated files.

Because I do enjoy that world so much I really wanted to support the author in this newest endeavor. I went in knowing that this was an adult book, not a fantasy/sci-fi book and most definitely NOT HP. Even so, it was difficult to divorce myself from those preconceived notions and just give this book a shot on it's own merits. There were a few spots in the book where I found myself pulled out of the story a bit by the swearing. I found myself wondering how much of it was necessary to the story and how much of it was an artifice to break from the HP mold. I do not have an issue with swearing, and it is clear that some measure of it is completely appropriate, and perhaps even necessary to illustrate the world created in The Casual Vacancy. There were still a few spots where it seemed - contrived almost - and reminded me that I was reading a JK Rowling book rather than getting me to forget about the author and immerse into the story.

I don't want to live in this world (even though I am aware that I do). All in all though, I am glad I made the purchase, and though this book had a lot of hurdles to jump - I think that it was worth the effort to experience what I view as a piece of art. The characters in this book are not the loveable oddballs of HP, but they do show that Rowling can create the rainbow of despicable humanity just as well.

I don't feel like I have said a whole lot to really encourage anyone towards this story, but I do think that any book that makes you think, makes you want to talk about it, makes you pause and reassess the way you view the world, is a good book. The Casual Vacancy did all of those things for me. Instead of wanting to escape into it's world it made me relieved to return to my own. Instead of falling in love with the characters, it made me recall why I love the people in my own. Instead of making me want to escape, it actually made me want to take action.

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The author is truly a genius

It's the minutia of small town life in Britain, the struggles of middle schoolers everywhere: sex, parents, dysfunction; of parents - relationships, appearances. There's a lot of truth and understanding and humanity in her writing. Given some of the reviews, I didn't expect to find the power and insights I did. It starts with high level quarrels and slowly descends beneath the surface to anger, revenge, and deeper still.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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One very weird book!

I can't identify a single, admirable character in the entire cast. Everyone was flawed, and most, fatally. Yet the author takes the reader into their lives so deftly, I was enthralled. Felt a bit like the proverbially bird watching a snake. Narrator Tom Hollander did a superb job, especially with the voicing of different characters. So much so, that I will search his name for other books he has narrated. Following a narrator, rather than only the author, is something I rarely do. All in all, a very, very good book, but if you're looking for something cheery and uplifting, do pass on this one.

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Boring

I cannot remember how many times I restarted this book! But I do remember falling asleep every time I restarted this book.
The narrator was excellent, I would listen to him again anytime.
Rowlings needs to stay in imaginary worlds where she is so much more entertaining and the reader develops a bond with the characters--and knows who is who and cares about them.
This book was a train wreck to listen to, no offense to Hogwarts...

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Rowling Proving Point NOT to be like Harry Potter

This story was very tedious will lots of foul language thrown in for good measure. I don't mind foul langue but it seemed to be thrown in just to be thrown in. Also the character development in this story was Painfully SLOW! There was none of the richness of and depth of characters we have come to expect from her. If she wasn't J.K. Rowling I don't know if this book would have been published. The brightest written parts of this book were when she was dealing with the high schoolers. Now for the bright side Tom Hollander did a fantastic job narrating and I would have no problems listening to any of his narration in the future. Hopefully now that J.K. Rowling has wrote this drivel she will write enriching full immersive worlds in the future.


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