Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

It’s a few years since I last read this particular HP book, and I had forgotten how special it was. Learning more about Voldemort’s past, upbringing, and family brought up interesting theories that I didn’t remember.

And while, I’m not a huge fan of Dumbledore for personal reasons, I remembered why he was a good character. Did I agree with his actions? Not always, but re-reading books as an adult does give me a somewhat better understanding of some of his actions, and I caught more of his little hints and red herrings this time around that I never did in the past.

Overall, this is still a great book. You really see how much the characters have grown from preteens to young adults, and how their world has changed around them due to Voldemort and how they must adapt to their new environment.

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akacasper24's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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sparksofkell's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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mariamj's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny informative mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

By far, the most heartbreaking book of the series...I forgot how sad this series gets until I read this book. Still a good read but not my favorite

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sunnycollins_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This has been, by far, my favorite book of the series. Everything about it just felt... better; the characters, the writing, the world building, all of it.

The further I get into the series the more I find that it's not the characters that I'm drawn to, it's the world. Getting a look into

Voldemort's background + family history

is really cool and makes the world around Hogwarts feel more storied and realistic.

That being said, I did really enjoy the arcs that each of the main characters went on over the course of the book. Everyone felt a bit more mature in this book which was much appreciated after five straight books of childish arguments between the trio.

The last few chapters were

heartbreaking, especially the last chapter with Dumbledore's funeral and Harry coming to terms with the fact that he is now responsible for defeating the Dark Lord.

On a sillier note, Professor Slughorn is one of my favorite teachers so I'm always happy to see more of him. I think that his character does a great job of adding a bit of the, now classic, "silly wizard stuff" to this book's rather dark plot.

Overall this book was an excellent read and I can't wait to finish off the series.

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