Out of pure curiosity, I recently picked up a second-hand copy of J.K.Rowling’s (non-fantasy) novel, The Casual Vacancy.
What a delight.
The story involves an enormous cast of characters getting involved in a fairly mundane matter — the filling of a vacant town council seat — and its profound and often tragic consequences for the people of the town. It’s not an easy read — Rowling writes in the Russian style, where characters are introduced and never again explained — but it is very well written.
This is also a novel for grownups and not a Harry Potter book. It’s a searing and bleak sketch of modern British small-town life, and I can recommend it wholeheartedly to any of my Readers (especially of the Brit genus ) who want a decent few hours’ entertainment.
I’m definitely going to read it again, in the not-so distant future. Thanks, J.K.
Since you’ve recommended it, I have to move it higher on my reading list.
My brother is recovering from a knee installation, and to keep him company, we’ve been watching an Icelandic mini-series, which has two names for its two parts, “Trapped”, and “Entrapped”. A Police procedural, a local cop, banished from Reykjavik investigates a series of murders in a small town that may or may not be related. Small town Gothic.
Oooooh I LOVE that series,,, watched both, will watch part 2 again sometime.
Speaking of reading recommendations, the second book in my ‘Republic of Texas Navy’ series, ‘The Lone Star, the Tricolor, and the Swastika’, just went live on Amazon today. (No link because I didn’t want to do that without our gracious host’s permission)
Link away, Cap’n.