sueotwell's review against another edition
4.0
I am so glad I decided to go back and actually read (well audio books but still) this series and once I finish I will have a HP Marathon with the family and fall in love all over again!
yako_0's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
giginious's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
5.0
friendshipbravery's review against another edition
5.0
I really have to give this book a 5/5 stars too (I'm writing this review after Deathly Hallows because I could not stop reading once I had the finale in my hand) and the one thing that really stuck out to me is the parallels between Harry, Snape, and Voldemort, as well as Draco's character. I feel like I see more regret in the movies than in the books on Draco. In this book, there are very distinct moments of vulnerability, but moments of cruelty and fright. At the end, when Dumbledore talks to Draco and convinces to lower his wand a fraction, I found the script in the movie a lot more moving. (I haven't watched the movie for reference again, but I will tonight). And I wish we got more of Snape as a DADA teacher! There are only about two references of him as a teacher and Harry seems to conveniently forget that Snape achieved his dream of being a DADA teacher and narrate his classes. However, these are all minor complaints. I love the arguments between Harry and Dumbledore concerning Snape because in the next book, we can see that Snape has those same arguments with Dumbledore about Harry (the parallelism, again), the theme of the story really changes when they go get the Horcrux and fail to find the real one; and Dumbledore's death was incredibly tragic, I was on the verge of tears multiple times. This book really captures the essence of a "cold war" vibe and portrays that gravity as well as loss so accurately. I could feel it through the book, through every word. Props to Rowling, yet again, for this masterpiece, and cheers to the Half-Blood Prince.
niklassdeadinside's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
darkmagician12's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
meaghanstewartt's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
maxinercd's review against another edition
5.0
this book used to be my least favourite one of the series
now reading it again for my master’s thesis, I can confidently say that I was wrong and that this is an absolute masterpiece from Joanne Rowling, setting the perfect base for the final volume (which is also absolutely excellent and wraps up the series in the best possible way of writing, just saying) and introducing some philosophical themes so smoothly that you really have to dig deep to understand all the layers of interpretation of this series
now reading it again for my master’s thesis, I can confidently say that I was wrong and that this is an absolute masterpiece from Joanne Rowling, setting the perfect base for the final volume (which is also absolutely excellent and wraps up the series in the best possible way of writing, just saying) and introducing some philosophical themes so smoothly that you really have to dig deep to understand all the layers of interpretation of this series
purrplenerd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
4.25
nadine34b10's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5