What is J.K. Rowling’s first adult novel outside the Harry Potter series?

J.K. Rowling’s first adult novel outside the Harry Potter series was The Casual Vacancy.

Published by Little, Brown and Company in 2012, the novel is set in the fictional English village of Pagford. Its plot begins after the unexpected death of parish councillor Barry Fairbrother, whose vacant seat triggers conflict among residents. The book examines class, poverty, politics, family tension, and local power.

Unlike the Harry Potter novels, The Casual Vacancy is contemporary social fiction and contains mature themes. Its setting is not a magical world, and it focuses on several intersecting adult and teenage characters rather than one fantasy protagonist.

The novel was adapted into a three-part BBC television drama in 2015. Rowling’s later adult crime novels were published under the Robert Galbraith pseudonym, beginning with The Cuckoo’s Calling.