Scan barcode
aceinit's review
After a little less than 100 pages, I am going to consign this one to the list of Novels I Wish I’d Enjoyed, But Didn’t. I find it interesting how fiercely people are defending Rowling and this book by insinuating the reader is to blame because they went in expecting Harry Potter and didn’t get it. As such, I feel the need to start off this review by defending myself by saying that I didn’t go in expecting Harry Potter.
I went in expecting a new book by J. K. Rowling, much the same way I treat any new book by a favorite author. And yes, I had a set of expectations that weren't necessarily met. Regardless of subject or genre, there are some authors whose new releases I will pick up and try regardless of genre or subject. I do this because I like the writer: their unique style, their way of creating characters, their way of crafting a story. Sometimes, I like the book. Sometimes I don't. The Casual Vacancy falls firmly under the latter category. I tried it. I didn’t like it. I’m moving on.
No, I didn't have a problem with the language. Yes, it shocked me the first time I saw "fuck" on the page. And it shocked me again when I saw a few other things that made "fuck" look tame in comparison. But, as I've already mentioned, this isn't Harry Potter, and I've read much more shocking things than a few profanities, so I moved on and silently applauded Rowling for potentially alienating a huge part of her readership with a handful of four-letter words.
What got me was the story itself, and the people who populate its world. The pettiness of small-town life and the small-town squabbles of small-minded people is not a subject I am remotely interested in reading about. Especially given the small-town way of thinking that has everything which happens in said small town becoming a Large Dramatic Event.
I grew up in a place very much like Rowling’s Pagford. Its authenticity rings very, very true. I have seen people react to politics and and addiction and employment and death in exactly the manors described in the opening chapters; where everyone is in such a rush to have a "scoop" on the news that humanity is left completely out of the picture. I hated the mentality when I lived it. Absence has not made the heart grow fonder in the years since I have moved away. Reading the opening chapters was like listening to my neighbors gossiping all over again, and it is something I have absolutely no desire whatsoever to do.
It would’ve helped if there had been any likable characters, but everyone is so full of themselves and their gossip and their own little lives and agendas that it made for a very self-serving, dismal cast. Everyone was so pathetically needy or controlling or puffed up on their own self-worth that I couldn’t find a single character that made me want to keep turning the pages.
Usually--even in books with a style or a plot I don’t necessarily like--there is at least that one character I’ll keep reading for, because I want to know what happens to them. I didn’t even have that here. And Rowling, who can introduce very memorable characters and make them both unique and wonderful very quickly, fails to deliver the goods here.
Rowling is also no stranger to turning a witty or memorable phrase, but the writing here is dull. It's dry. It lacks wit and charm and pretty much everything that makes Rowling such a stand-out author.
There are quite a few other books I could be reading right now, so I am not going to waste my time trying to enjoy something just because I feel like I should.
I went in expecting a new book by J. K. Rowling, much the same way I treat any new book by a favorite author. And yes, I had a set of expectations that weren't necessarily met. Regardless of subject or genre, there are some authors whose new releases I will pick up and try regardless of genre or subject. I do this because I like the writer: their unique style, their way of creating characters, their way of crafting a story. Sometimes, I like the book. Sometimes I don't. The Casual Vacancy falls firmly under the latter category. I tried it. I didn’t like it. I’m moving on.
No, I didn't have a problem with the language. Yes, it shocked me the first time I saw "fuck" on the page. And it shocked me again when I saw a few other things that made "fuck" look tame in comparison. But, as I've already mentioned, this isn't Harry Potter, and I've read much more shocking things than a few profanities, so I moved on and silently applauded Rowling for potentially alienating a huge part of her readership with a handful of four-letter words.
What got me was the story itself, and the people who populate its world. The pettiness of small-town life and the small-town squabbles of small-minded people is not a subject I am remotely interested in reading about. Especially given the small-town way of thinking that has everything which happens in said small town becoming a Large Dramatic Event.
I grew up in a place very much like Rowling’s Pagford. Its authenticity rings very, very true. I have seen people react to politics and and addiction and employment and death in exactly the manors described in the opening chapters; where everyone is in such a rush to have a "scoop" on the news that humanity is left completely out of the picture. I hated the mentality when I lived it. Absence has not made the heart grow fonder in the years since I have moved away. Reading the opening chapters was like listening to my neighbors gossiping all over again, and it is something I have absolutely no desire whatsoever to do.
It would’ve helped if there had been any likable characters, but everyone is so full of themselves and their gossip and their own little lives and agendas that it made for a very self-serving, dismal cast. Everyone was so pathetically needy or controlling or puffed up on their own self-worth that I couldn’t find a single character that made me want to keep turning the pages.
Usually--even in books with a style or a plot I don’t necessarily like--there is at least that one character I’ll keep reading for, because I want to know what happens to them. I didn’t even have that here. And Rowling, who can introduce very memorable characters and make them both unique and wonderful very quickly, fails to deliver the goods here.
Rowling is also no stranger to turning a witty or memorable phrase, but the writing here is dull. It's dry. It lacks wit and charm and pretty much everything that makes Rowling such a stand-out author.
There are quite a few other books I could be reading right now, so I am not going to waste my time trying to enjoy something just because I feel like I should.
tofilmfiles's review
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
jgunner79's review
2.0
Honestly, it pissed me off that I read this through to the end (which I did because of it's author). What a bleak piece of work.
leggup's review
4.0
This is JK Rowling's first novel after wrapping up the Harry Potter series- and it shows. I believe a lot of the content comes from Rowling trying to prove that she can write adult books with adult themes. Some themes include: adultery, incest, rape, child rape, junkies, suicide, cutting, negligent homicide, child molestation, and so on. A few characters get redemption by the end of the book, but not much redemption.
If the book could be summed up in one line, it would be, "About 25 people screw up each other's lives daily." It's well written but pretty grim. You won't see any of the twists coming.
If the book could be summed up in one line, it would be, "About 25 people screw up each other's lives daily." It's well written but pretty grim. You won't see any of the twists coming.
lindsayaunderwood's review
3.0
The last 30 pages brought this book from 2 to 3 stars. I just did not care about any of these characters. They were all atrocious humans. Trust me I like a good evil, hilariously cruel, or evil character, but these characters were terrible people that were downright boring. If anything, it reminds you that if you're not careful you turn into a middle aged man or woman whose greatest excitement is sharing gossip first or being the person to edit the town council's website.
keyfollin's review
3.0
Took a long time to get engrossed in this, to find much compelling about the characters. Then, about 60% through, it all clocked and I couldn't put it down. Quite a dark book.
tildy08's review
3.0
Although I like J.K. Rowling, this book had so many similar characters I found it difficult to keep them all straight until the last 100 pages. Considering this book is 500 pages long, that's a concern, hence the lower rating.
mskrzydlinski's review
4.0
I stopped reading this book for a while because the amount of characters and plots I just couldn't follow or keep track of. I kept confusing who was who and who did what. Once I picked it back up again and started over I discovered after the forst 200 pages it finally got interesting. I did only pick this book up because JK Rowling is the author and I wanted to see what else she could do. Not fully impressed but not completey disappointed.