One of, if not the best Potter so far.
Written: Jul 17 '05 (Updated Jul 17 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: A rollicking read, non-stop action
Cons: Minor plot inconsistencies (or are they?)
The Bottom Line: The best Harry Potter so far.
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| thorswolf's Full Review: J. K. Rowling - Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Pr... |
Like many others, I couldn't wait for July 16 (which should have been dubbed International Harry Potter Day). I purchased my Harry Potter copy early in the morning and settled for a half-day of reading (I had a list of chores to complete first). Having madly rushed through the latest installment of the Harry Potter saga, I am confident that many among you will be simply delighted by the results of J.K. Rowling's effort.
I must say that the fifth installment (Order of the Phoenix) left me somewhat tepid. The pace of Order of Phoenix was exceedingly slow, and too much time was spent on Harry's angst and inner turmoil. I now understand that Rowling had to use Order of Pheonix to set the stage for the Half-blood Prince, had to show Harry gaining some form of authority at Hogwart's and gathering a following. But, once again, the pace of Order of Phoenix was dreadful compared to the previous books.
Not so with Half-Blood Prince. From the first page, Rowling immediately grabs you by the eyeballs and doesn't let you go until your body screams that it was time to go to bed four hours ago. I could literally not put the book down. I kept telling myself "after the next chapter".
As much as Order of Phoenix was an exploration of Harry Potter's personality and growth (while including a lovely cliffhanger at the end that left us panting for two years) Half-Blood Prince is almost all non-stop action and plot development throughout. Although the characters' personalities are still developed along the way, this is minor and not to the extent of the previous Rowling offering. Ginny Weasly takes her most prominent role since Chamber of Secrets and I can't wait to see how much further the author will add to her interesting character.
Harry is still adding to his store of magical objects. The Invisibility Cloak, the Marauder's Map make their appearance, and more goodies are added to Harry's stock along the way. His knowledge of magic and wizardry develops in unexpected directions.
With this book, Rowling has mastered the art of the cliffhanger, ending nearly all her chapters with one. The plot twists are interesting and the curtain is lifted even more on the life of the dreaded Lord Voldemort. While many of Rowling's other books centered on a surprise ending, this book feels somewhat different in that it is not a classic "whodunnit" with all the pieces being tied together neatly at the end. Far from it. There is a definitive goal or intent throughout and clever use of foreshadowing lets you guess that momentous events are afoot (as indeed they are, but I won't spoil it for you).
The book is also much darker than the previous offerings. Some see this as a negative but I don't. After the revelations at the end of Order of Phoenix, and with "You-Know-Who" back in action with his cronies, it was impossible to avoid. It gives us a real taste of the fear and dread that the character inspires, and allows Rowling to explore the limits to which some characters will go to please "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named" and the extent to which some will go to fight him.
Rowling (assumedly) resolves some long-standing issues for us concerning Snape, Malfoy, Voldemort, etc. But I personally believe that we are still being led down the garden path and that Rowling has more shocking surprises in store for us in book seven. The future will tell.
The one aspect that is often overlooked about the Harry Potter books is how well they move along with the target audience. One has to remember that the first Harry Potter fans, pre-teens when Philosopher's Stone came out, are now eight years older, and the complexity and vocabulary of the books have grown to match that target audience's current age.
Overall, Half-Blood Prince, other than for a few inconsistencies (and I'm not even sure they are and may be just setting the stage for the next book) is a major tour de force on the authors's part. I cannot recommend it heartily enough. That being said, I wish Rowling would use a Quick-Quotes Quill to write her books... I can't wait for the next one.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
thorswolf
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Reviews written: 9
Trusted by: 1 member
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