Monday, October 08, 2012

Teaser Tuesday 147: The Casual Vacancy

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

* Grab your current book or recent read.
* Share a few "teaser" sentences from somewhere in the book.
* BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (Make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away. You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
* Share the title and author so that other participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teaser!


The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling is the next book on my to-read pile. This is from the first chapter, and I've about as much of an idea what is happening as you do.


Then pain such as he had never experienced sliced through his brain like a demolition ball. He barely noticed the smarting of his knees as they smacked onto the cold tarmac; his skull was awash with fire and blood; the agony was excruciating beyond endurance, except that endure it he must, for oblivion was still a minute away.

(Page 7)





ABOUT THE BOOK:
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 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 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?

The Casual Vacancy is J.K. Rowling’s first novel for adults.




32 comments:

Sandra Nachlinger said...

I've been curious about this book, and this is a great teaser. Thanks for posting the brief synopsis too. Will you write a review and post it to your blog?
My teaser is from CONFESSIONS OF A CORPORATE SLUT.

Malcolm R. Campbell said...

It's fun seeing this teaser because I'm about 100 pages into the book. I do remember those lines.

Malcolm

P.S. Here's my teaser: http://sunsingerstravels.wordpress.com/2012/10/09/teaser-tuesday-sunlight-and-shadow-by-mark-helprin/

Yvonne @ Fiction Books Reviews said...

Hi Heather,

It sounds as though we are reading about the demise of poor Barry here ... No comments about chest pains, so I imagine we are talking massive brain hemorrhage?

I quite like the sound of this one, from the synopsis at least, although it has met with pretty mixed reactions, here in the UK.

I hope that you enjoy the read and thanks for sharing those lines.

Yvonne

Susan said...

It seems like the guy is dying? Interesting teaser!

I actually had this book from the library, but after reading so many different reviews, I'm not going to bother reading it...at least right now. It'll be interesting to see what you think.

Here's my TT

Beth said...

Oh my! It sounds like the story goes straight to the action right away. Here is my teaser for this week.

Jennifer said...

That's intense. I'm hoping to start this one this weekend...maybe sooner after reading your teaser. :)

Duncan D. Horne - the Kuantan blogger said...

Intense first chapter segment! Love it!
Here's mine: I love Dan Brown

The Readdicts said...

I've just got my copy of The Casual Vacancy and after your teaser, I can barely wait to start reading it! Yay. :D Nice teaser!


It would be great if you could stop by my Teaser Tuesday post.

Happy reading!

Sarika @ The Readdicts

Belinda said...

I'm so curious about this book! Even more now :p

I shared two teasers … hope you enjoy them!
Bels ~ The Bookish Snob
http://www.thebookishsnob.com/2012/10/teaser-tuesday-im-back.html

Unknown said...

I'm so excited for this one! Great teaser!

Here's mine:
http://mrscaptkirk51.blogspot.com/2012/10/teaser-tuesdays-oct9.htm

Laurel-Rain Snow said...

I'm very curious about this one, and that's a powerful teaser! Thanks...and here's MY TUESDAY MEMES POST

Ciska said...

Great teaser, got the book lined up. Hope you enjoy the rest of it.

My Teaser http://mybookchest.blogspot.nl/2012/10/teaser-dracula.html

Anonymous said...

A very intense teaser.

http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2012/10/teaser-tuesday-owlet-by-emma-michaels.html

Heather said...

Sandy: Thanks, I'm glad you like both the teaser and the synopsis. I suck at writing reviews, but we'll see...

Sun: Ah, someoen else who is reading it. Hope you are enjoying it so far!

Heather said...

Yvonne: Yes, it does seem to have had mixed reviews. I am trying not to read any of them, so as to form my own opinion. I think a lot of people were expecting something along the lines of Harry Potter, even though the author and publisher have been saying for months that this is for adults, and nothing like her best-selling children's series.

Heather said...

Susan: I hope you will change your mind about reading it, but then--if you aren't sure about it, it is better to give someone on the wait list a chance at it.

Beth: Yes, it did seem to go right into an action scene. Can't wait to really dive into it. The first two chapters read fast, so that's something to look forward to.

Heather said...

Beth: Yes, quite a bit of action in the first chapter, though you don't expect this when scene the way the book starts.

Jennifer: Hope you get to start it soon--happy reading! :)

Heather said...

Duncan: Thanks, glad you liked! ; )

Hi Sarika! I hope you enjoy your reading of this book. Thanks for visiting!

Belinda: Glad to have piqued your curiosity! : D

Heather said...

Alli: I think many people are excited to have a new book from Rowlings. Hope you get to read it soon!

Laurel-Rain: Thank you, I'm glad you like this week's teaser. As soon as I read this passage, I knew I had to use it. *g*

Heather said...

Ciska: Thank you, I hope you like it when you get round to it, too!

Trib Book Mama: Thank you, and thanks for visiting!

Sarah said...

I read this book and wasn't a huge fan, which I never thought I'd say about a JKR book! I hope you enjoy it more than I did :D

My TT.

Happy reading!

Sarah @ TotalTeenFiction

Anonymous said...

I have been wondering about this book. Sounds like it is really well written, which isn't surprising of course. Great teaser! Here is my teaser for Alice in Zombieland!

Vyki @ On The Shelf
Check out my new meme Cover Crush.

Paulita said...

Does that teaser remind anyone else of Harry Potter and his scar from Voldemort? I think she's used pain slicing through his head before. I'm anxious to hear what you think about it. Here's Mine

Heather said...

Vyki: Thanks! I'm anxious to get into it and see how her writing for adults compares to the HP series.

Paulita: Ah, dear pessimist, but this is a differnt sort of pain. ;) Thanks for visiting!

Alice Audrey said...

That's a little different than what I generally expect from her. But then, she did say she was going to do something different next.

Heather said...

Alice: Yes, she did warn people in advance, for those expecting more YA books like Harry Potter. According to a recent interview, while she is adament that Harry's story is done, she has not ruled out setting other stories in that world.

Cyn @ Bookmunchies said...

I'm excited to read this! and you're teaser's definitely making me want to start it soon!
This is my Teaser at Bookmunchies :)

Heather said...

Thanks, Cyn. I hope you get to read it soon!

Yvonne said...

Excellent teaser! I heard about this book, but I haven't read it.

Heather said...

Thanks, Yvonne! :)

kayerj said...

great teaser--I hope to get to it some time next year.

Heather said...

Thanks, Kaye! I hope you find the time to read it!