I love J.K. Rowling. A lot. She has a truly singular grasp of language and psyche that lends itself well to her description of setting and construction of character. As far as these aspects are concerned, she remains in rare form here. Pagford, along with all of its depicted denizens, are fascinatingly life-like and practically pulsating with life and reality. 
 The true snag, and it's an unfortunate one, is that it's just a boring story. I could read J.K. Rowling's prose for days just to revel in the unique construction of it, but if it weren't for that particular love, I fear I wouldn't find anything to like here. I recommend the book but only to the J.K. Rowling fans who actually appreciate and understand writing (i.e. Not people who just like Harry Potter). Definitely not a page-turner but still a good read.