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ellelainey's review against another edition
5.0
Being a massive fan of the Harry Potter books and films i loved this book. It's very like the original Harry Potter with the way the characters act and speak. It's exactly the sort of things you would expect from Harry Potter's son.
It's a great kids story, just like the original Harry Potter books. You get a lot of glimpses of the Harry Potter series - mentions of past events, the Battle of Hogwarts, old characters and grudges - but much more with new characters and new circumstances. It's great to see what might have been after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. You get to see what happened to Remus and Tonk's son Ted and everyone else's kids. Even though the mischief of Fred and George isn't there, Ted and his 'Gremlins' make up for the loss.
The only drawback for me is that around page 100, i lost interest for a week. Lots of things were hinted at and happening, lots of classes and mischief, but nothing that explained the events at the beginning of the book enough to satisfy my curiosity and continue reading. Eventually, being one to finish what i start, i went back to it and found that after four or five pages, things really started to happen in a way that i became hooked just as badly as i had been when reading Harry Potter. I still have one or two unanswered questions, but am hopeful that they'll be explained in the next two books of the series.
If you read HP 1-7, saw the films and loved them, read this! If you were like me and read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through the Ages and the Harry Potter Encyclopedia then you have to read this book!
It's a great kids story, just like the original Harry Potter books. You get a lot of glimpses of the Harry Potter series - mentions of past events, the Battle of Hogwarts, old characters and grudges - but much more with new characters and new circumstances. It's great to see what might have been after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. You get to see what happened to Remus and Tonk's son Ted and everyone else's kids. Even though the mischief of Fred and George isn't there, Ted and his 'Gremlins' make up for the loss.
The only drawback for me is that around page 100, i lost interest for a week. Lots of things were hinted at and happening, lots of classes and mischief, but nothing that explained the events at the beginning of the book enough to satisfy my curiosity and continue reading. Eventually, being one to finish what i start, i went back to it and found that after four or five pages, things really started to happen in a way that i became hooked just as badly as i had been when reading Harry Potter. I still have one or two unanswered questions, but am hopeful that they'll be explained in the next two books of the series.
If you read HP 1-7, saw the films and loved them, read this! If you were like me and read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through the Ages and the Harry Potter Encyclopedia then you have to read this book!
ashleyfuhr's review against another edition
3.0
It took me awhile to get invested. The story is a bit drawn out and doesn't get terribly interesting until the last third or so.
I think you have to know going in that it will never be as good as the world Rowling created, but it will get you back there to help fuel your desire for more. It's different, but I don't think you can expect it to be the same. There are some things that don't coincide with Rowling's world, but the author admits that there are many flaws and that his works continue to get better. This first one he wrote for himself and was never to be widely distributed, after all. That inspired me to continue reading through the series.
I think they're good enough to help you get your fix. I'd recommend them to potter heads, but can't guarantee you'll like them!
I think you have to know going in that it will never be as good as the world Rowling created, but it will get you back there to help fuel your desire for more. It's different, but I don't think you can expect it to be the same. There are some things that don't coincide with Rowling's world, but the author admits that there are many flaws and that his works continue to get better. This first one he wrote for himself and was never to be widely distributed, after all. That inspired me to continue reading through the series.
I think they're good enough to help you get your fix. I'd recommend them to potter heads, but can't guarantee you'll like them!
deekshithshenoy's review against another edition
5.0
Man that was like a breath of fresh air. It was really good. I read it immediately after harry potter and the deathly hallows series.
Have to say it is wayyyyyy better than the cursed child. This book seems... Right. But well its my opinion
I had never thought i would love a character like i loved Dumbledore , as a benevolent, kind teacher. But Merlin!!! You would feel he is a super villian but he turns out to be way better.
Harry Potter is back. And he is perfectly aged,i felt. He wasn't too "teenage".
I felt this version of Harry Potter was much better than the cursed child who is just arrogant, who blackmails McGonagall.
Here Harry knows that the greatest magic is.... Love. As Dumbledore says. Harry is lovable and you can see that the author has loved and respected the canon books. I just hope to see this as cannon.
Have to say it is wayyyyyy better than the cursed child. This book seems... Right. But well its my opinion
I had never thought i would love a character like i loved Dumbledore , as a benevolent, kind teacher. But Merlin!!! You would feel he is a super villian but he turns out to be way better.
Harry Potter is back. And he is perfectly aged,i felt. He wasn't too "teenage".
I felt this version of Harry Potter was much better than the cursed child who is just arrogant, who blackmails McGonagall.
Here Harry knows that the greatest magic is.... Love. As Dumbledore says. Harry is lovable and you can see that the author has loved and respected the canon books. I just hope to see this as cannon.
singh_reads_kanwar2's review against another edition
4.0
This forward story of the novel show that James is not a hero like his father but , he do heroic deed without him knowing he put his views forward and try to solve problems on his own and ask for it when need arise. Story is return of merlin greatest sorcerer of his time and James earlier thought that Merlin is bad guy in the story but he became the coolest headmaster of Hogwarts although at start he didn't know things changes in past as he is dead for more than centuries and Hogwarts have changed alot from the time of its establishment, Merlin helps James in various ways in this year and hope to see some more adventures in future.
mayetra's review against another edition
2.0
First and foremost, there is no comparison with this novel to J.K.R's novels. This is a work of fanfiction and shouldn't be compared to the originals. I have, however, read, or attempted to read, a fair amount of fanfiction. A lot was just bad, some were fair and then there were the diamonds in the rough. This book is one of those, if you can get past the things that are just wrong with the story. Purists will have a harder time with this novel.
The good part of this book is that for the most part it feels like you are stepping back into the Wizarding world. The author does a fair job of doing that. The good additions to the world fit pretty seamlessly. I really like how James and his new friends all ended up in different houses. I like the concept of James struggling with being compared to his famous father but I don't know that it was executed as well as it could have been. There are times that James comes off as an arrogant, spoiled prat.
The bad parts, however, are jarring enough that it might make the book unreadable for some. I loathed the character of Zane. I'm American and Zane played like an obnoxious American stereotype. He was rude. I wanted to punch the brat on the train when he basically told James to buy them all something from the trolley because he only had American money. Why did he only have American money? That made no sense. Hermione was able to exchange Muggle money for wizarding funds. How did Zane buy his school stuff and why would his parents use wizard money to buy his things and then send him to wizard school with American cash. They are in Britain, why are his parents giving him American money anyway? His dad is well traveled and they are in the UK for his dad's work. He did not speak like a 10 year old modern American kid. He spoke like an old guy from the 40s or 50s. I never said "drat", none of the kids today are saying "drat". My 15 year-old doesn't say "drat" and neither do his friends. His vernacular and slang were just wrong for a kid his age. I hated the fact that he thought he could just throw money at things or that he made zero effort to learn how to navigate the Wizarding world. Not all Americans act this way and we are not all "obnoxious cowboys".
I almost put the book down during the "Wocket" episode. I get that Teddy and his friends are supposed to be the new Fred/George/Lee group who followed in the footsteps of the Marauders. But the entire "Alien" prank fell flat for me.
While some of the new additions the author made to the wizarding world fit smoothly, other things were just jarring. The author wrote this novel for his wife and kids - commendable - but I have to wonder if he'd even read the original series. There were so many details that were just off. When these things happened, I was ripped out of the story and it ruined it for me. In the beginning of the book, bad guys use a different killing curse and it flashes orange. You can argue that the author was introducing a new spell to the universe but honestly, the old one worked fine and it would have made the prologue more smooth. The entire breakfast scene was ruined for me the morning after the great feast. House elves everywhere. He completely reworked how the tables worked from the original. We the readers, along with Harry, aren't even introduced to house elves until the second book, so I doubt they are crawling around under the Great Hall tables picking up discarded silverware. Or worse, acting as porters at the front doors, it's Hogwarts not the Hilton. Also, James owl is his dorm in it's cage rather than in the Owlery with the rest of the owls. So, either the author was clueless about that little detail or James is a spoiled brat who feels he deserves special treatment and can keep his owl in his room. I could go on and on in this vein, we won't speak about the wizarding kid trooping around with his trusty backpack, but you get the idea.
Overall, the story is not horrible and it will give you a Harry Potter Universe fix but it is not the greatness that was the original novels. And, frankly, it wouldn't be because J.K.R. didn't write it.
The good part of this book is that for the most part it feels like you are stepping back into the Wizarding world. The author does a fair job of doing that. The good additions to the world fit pretty seamlessly. I really like how James and his new friends all ended up in different houses. I like the concept of James struggling with being compared to his famous father but I don't know that it was executed as well as it could have been. There are times that James comes off as an arrogant, spoiled prat.
The bad parts, however, are jarring enough that it might make the book unreadable for some. I loathed the character of Zane. I'm American and Zane played like an obnoxious American stereotype. He was rude. I wanted to punch the brat on the train when he basically told James to buy them all something from the trolley because he only had American money. Why did he only have American money? That made no sense. Hermione was able to exchange Muggle money for wizarding funds. How did Zane buy his school stuff and why would his parents use wizard money to buy his things and then send him to wizard school with American cash. They are in Britain, why are his parents giving him American money anyway? His dad is well traveled and they are in the UK for his dad's work. He did not speak like a 10 year old modern American kid. He spoke like an old guy from the 40s or 50s. I never said "drat", none of the kids today are saying "drat". My 15 year-old doesn't say "drat" and neither do his friends. His vernacular and slang were just wrong for a kid his age. I hated the fact that he thought he could just throw money at things or that he made zero effort to learn how to navigate the Wizarding world. Not all Americans act this way and we are not all "obnoxious cowboys".
I almost put the book down during the "Wocket" episode. I get that Teddy and his friends are supposed to be the new Fred/George/Lee group who followed in the footsteps of the Marauders. But the entire "Alien" prank fell flat for me.
While some of the new additions the author made to the wizarding world fit smoothly, other things were just jarring. The author wrote this novel for his wife and kids - commendable - but I have to wonder if he'd even read the original series. There were so many details that were just off. When these things happened, I was ripped out of the story and it ruined it for me. In the beginning of the book, bad guys use a different killing curse and it flashes orange. You can argue that the author was introducing a new spell to the universe but honestly, the old one worked fine and it would have made the prologue more smooth. The entire breakfast scene was ruined for me the morning after the great feast. House elves everywhere. He completely reworked how the tables worked from the original. We the readers, along with Harry, aren't even introduced to house elves until the second book, so I doubt they are crawling around under the Great Hall tables picking up discarded silverware. Or worse, acting as porters at the front doors, it's Hogwarts not the Hilton. Also, James owl is his dorm in it's cage rather than in the Owlery with the rest of the owls. So, either the author was clueless about that little detail or James is a spoiled brat who feels he deserves special treatment and can keep his owl in his room. I could go on and on in this vein, we won't speak about the wizarding kid trooping around with his trusty backpack, but you get the idea.
Overall, the story is not horrible and it will give you a Harry Potter Universe fix but it is not the greatness that was the original novels. And, frankly, it wouldn't be because J.K.R. didn't write it.
cris136's review against another edition
When I start a book I have to finish it, but definitely not my favorite.
cakegeek's review against another edition
4.0
This is the first time that I have read any fan fiction and I have to say that Lippert has done a good job of it!
He did very well to capture some of the magic and atmosphere that JKR created, I will admit that there was 1 or 2 bits that didn't quite sit right for me... things that in my head were a little disjointed from the Potter universe in my head; but then again, there was some things that didn't sit right with the originals for me (don't lynch me)
As long as you approach it for what it is; a fans dedication/expansion to the original series; then you are in for a treat of a read.
I really enjoyed it an I am looking forward to the rest of the series
He did very well to capture some of the magic and atmosphere that JKR created, I will admit that there was 1 or 2 bits that didn't quite sit right for me... things that in my head were a little disjointed from the Potter universe in my head; but then again, there was some things that didn't sit right with the originals for me (don't lynch me)
As long as you approach it for what it is; a fans dedication/expansion to the original series; then you are in for a treat of a read.
I really enjoyed it an I am looking forward to the rest of the series
novelsbycaitlin's review against another edition
I've usually don't read fan fiction, but this has peaked my interest.
whatanerdgirlsays's review against another edition
2.0
It was okay. I wasn't exactly fond on the idea of a James Sirius Potter book but I heard good things about this and decided to read it. Didn't like it that much. it was cute, and original but it wasn't something I would read again.
hmonkeyreads's review against another edition
4.0
Four Stars might be a little generous....but it was good and it really felt like reading a real Harry Potter book. I can't wait to move on to books two and three.
If you miss Harry Potter -- you can't beat this free book.
If you miss Harry Potter -- you can't beat this free book.