The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling book cover
Well that was a bit more like it. For the first time in a while I can actually look back on a month's blogging and feel like you've all got your money's worth out of me: Not only did I crank out an epically long (1,500 words) review of On the Road, but also enjoyed interviewing new novelist D. H. Nevins and spewing forth, a very respectable, five reviews during October.

But enough of the self-congratulating, and onto November. There's one book that everyone's been talking about of late and it's J. K. Rowling's first adult offering (no, that's not 'Adult' as in 50 Shades). The Casual Vacancy encompasses the lives of the members of a small market town as they all reel from the death of local councillor, Barry Fairbrother. Cue small town politicking and mindless gossiping.

And that's not all, in a somewhat unexpected turn I seem to have unofficially made this Rowling month at Bibliofreak.net as I intend to also review not one, but two of the Harry Potter series this month. Exactly which two I'll be reviewing, I'll leave up to you to guess, will it be 4 and 7, 5 and 6, or will it be, following the natural order of things and my recent review of The Philosopher's Stone, 2 and 3? You'll have to wait and find out... I reckon I might also post a couple of Harry Potter puzzles too, given the recent decline in activity on that front. (Oh ok, it is books 2 and 3).

Not wishing to entirely alienate the rest of you lovely people who are entirely uninterested in 'what Jo did next', I'll write you delicious contrarions something about Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis - you'll enjoy that, it's about vapid teenagers and the end of civilisation, or something along those lines.

There are several other things my conscience is pricking me to read, but I haven't decided which I'll actually pick up this month, so we'll call any other reviews pot luck.

Enjoy November, winter's coming, 'tis the season to be reading...

Notable Posts from October