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The Casual Vacancy
- Narrated by: Tom Hollander
- Length: 17 hrs and 50 mins
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The Casual Vacancy
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Summary
Shortlisted for: UK Author of the year – Specsavers National Book Awards 2012
When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early 40s, 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?
A big novel about a small town, The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling's first novel for adults. It is the work of a storyteller like no other.
What listeners say about The Casual Vacancy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Bob
- 19-11-18
Not my normal genre....
what a fantastic story teller JK is, the narration was wonderful. loved it loved it
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 25-02-17
Brilliant Read.
I found it difficult to get into this book at the start but I decided to stick with it. And I'm glad I did, The Casual Vacancy turned out to be an excellent read and I found myself looking forward to any spare moment I had so that I could listen to the book.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- H. Coombs
- 21-08-16
Surgical precision
Brilliant writing and outstanding performance. Tom Hollander conveys the irony and suppressed rage of the protagonists in this surgical uncovering of the dark secrets of a community. Parochial, self obsessed, petty minded the characters are almost all ghastly in some way and yet there is empathy and understanding of the frailties we all recognise.
The TV adaptation was hugely enjoyable but the book itself is terrific
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Miss I Naylor
- 02-12-15
Good and worth a listen
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I loved the Harry Potter books and also her other series so felt this was the logical next step. It had interesting characters and some good twists.
What other book might you compare The Casual Vacancy to, and why?
Not sure - something village based. It's not the sort of genre I would usually read.
Which character – as performed by Tom Hollander – was your favourite?
Crystal. I thought she came across well.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No.
Any additional comments?
I always kept thinking that something big was going to happen in this book which kept me going. It wasn't something I would have stopped listening to and enjoyed it but I was a tad disappointed with the ending.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Nellie
- 29-06-16
Not a feel good book
Characters were gritty and realistic. Narrator used a variety of voices to bring them to life. This is a book about people rather than plot and the ending was depressing and unresolved.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Robin
- 05-08-15
The Casual Vacancy
I started off as an observer, but ended up as a family member.
What a clever audible book, able to immerse the listener without effort.
Can only hope for more of the same --- excellent!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Nicola
- 02-05-15
enjoyable
slow to start but hard to put down, I really enjoyed it.sorry it came to an end, felt like I really knew the characters.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- katherine
- 02-04-15
Enjoyable story
I struggled to get into is book at first because a lot of characters are introduced in a short amount of time, so it was hard to place some of them in my mind. However the more I listened, the more engaging the book became and I began to really look forward to listening on my way to work. What also helped with placing the characters was watching the episodes of The Casual Vacancy on iplayer. I would recommend this book.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Carolyn
- 27-01-13
Great depth of characters
I had no massive expectations of this book and haven't read the Harry Potter books and this really came as a welcome surprise. The narration is excellent and the story line is good but probably not exceptional. The thing that is exceptional however is the depth and astonishing realism that Rowling has put into the characters and this lifts the storyline and gives it worth. You really begin to understand how they think and feel and how their fears and weaknesses drive them.
You could argue that this slows down the book slightly but this isn't a rip roaring thriller so it feels worth doing. You can immerse yourself into a setting that feels like it could be being acted out for real in any village in England. Thoroughly enjoyable and it "stayed with me" for some time after I finished it.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Lloyd HOARTON
- 23-12-12
Sobering
All the characters are given fairly equal weight and there are a lot of them. None of them comes out at the end smelling of roses. Lots of false peaks and a sobering but not glum ending
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