What was J.K. Rowling’s first published book for adults under her own name?

The Casual Vacancy was J.K. Rowling’s first published book for adults under her own name. The novel was published in 2012 and is a social satire set in the fictional English town of Pagford.

Its story begins when a seat on Pagford’s parish council becomes vacant after the death of Barry Fairbrother. The resulting election exposes conflicts involving class, poverty, education, addiction, and local politics. Unlike the Harry Potter novels, it contains no magic and is written for an adult audience.

The book’s title refers to the political vacancy created by Fairbrother’s death. Readers sometimes confuse it with Rowling’s first adult crime novel, The Cuckoo’s Calling, which appeared in 2013 under the name Robert Galbraith. The Casual Vacancy was published openly as Rowling’s work, making it the relevant answer to this question.

The novel was adapted into a television miniseries by the BBC and HBO in 2015. Its publication demonstrated Rowling’s move into a different literary form while retaining her interest in institutions, social divisions, and the effects of decisions on families and communities.