J.K. Rowling's New BBC Show Is Decidedly Un-Harry Potter

After experiencing worldwide success from her Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling's second series got released under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. While that veil of secrecy got lifted pretty quickly (thanks, Twitter), that didn't keep fans of the Potterverse — and a slew of other readers — from flocking to the Cormoran Strike series. Now, it looks like Rowling's getting a whole new audience, because the books are turning into a BBC series, set to air in the UK later this month.

Marie Claire reports that Strike: The Cuckoo's Calling is the first novel to get the adaptation treatment, though we're sure that just about anything Rowling creates will make it to the screen eventually. The book and series are a huge step away from the world of wizards and magic. Instead, it's a mystery series that'll feel pretty familiar to anyone who's a fan of airport gift-store hardbacks and James Patterson.

"What makes Strike an exceptional investigator is that he just works very hard. He's not like Sherlock — blessed with the ability to see everything. He's a former soldier who lost a leg in Afghanistan and who had a difficult upbringing," Ruth Kenley-Letts, the show's producer told The Guardian. "He's not magical. There's something appealing about that. It makes a nice change to have a show where the crimes aren't solved in a clever-dick way but because they put the effort in."

But what Strike: The Cuckoo's Calling does have in common with the Harry Potter saga is Rowling's trademark style. It keeps viewers (and readers) interested with compelling characters and deep, involved plots that make for can't-put-it-down books and suspenseful shows alike. Rowling or not, the show looks like an amazing end-of-summer distraction that's sure to fill the Downton Abbey-shaped hole in viewers' heart. It hits BBC One on August 27 and hopefully makes its way stateside shortly after that.