No: HPFGUIDX 133138
Just had to join in on the fun.
Harry - I was incredibly surprised (in a good way) how much more
mature and grownup he acted in this book. Other than the quick
mention of him not eating back at the Dursleys, he seems to have
dealt with Sirius' death quite well. I was also impressed about how
he is dealing with the prophecy, taking on responsibility for
defeating LV and accepting this as his destiny instead of running
away or resenting it; making it his choice (he really is DD's man).
For 16 he's become quite mature and I hope this is an indication
that he's really starting to become an adult. As for his
relationship with Ginny, all I have to say is, "Yippee!" I loved so
much the passages where he tries to justify his feelings for her as
older brother-ish and when he wanted to beat the crap out of Dean
for kissing her in the halls. I was a mite disappointed that he
decided to break up with her in the end, but he's right: this is
something that he has to do by himself, it is his destiny and no one
else's, and while Ginny would have every right to be ticked that
he's making decisions for her, I was also impressed by her own
maturity in that situation, accepting his choice and holding out
hope for the future (please, let there be one!). And that bit about
Harry's Hungarian Horntail tattoo? Priceless.
Ron/Hermione - Vindication! I loved their bickering (as I always
did) and loved the complexities that were worked into their
relationship. I was also qutie pleased that they both decided to
help Harry next year, whether he returns to Hogwarts or not. My mom
says that's just setting them up to die, but I disagree: these two,
I'm sure, will make it through unscathed.
And to get the rest of the shipping out of the way:
Fleur/Bill - Oh, gag me.
Remus/Tonks - Oh, so cute. It's about time he had a friend who
wasn't evil or dead. Do we have a consensus on her age? I always
thought she was in her early twenties, and if Remus is now 37-38,
that's not too old.
Dumbledore - Well, let's just say we saw this one coming from Day 1.
I am of the opinion that he will be back in some form, as Harry
still has a good bit of quest to be getting on with and he'll need
the help. What I really want to know is where Fawkes got to and how
DD's portrait got into the Head's office so quickly. But on a more
serious note, those last four chapters were some of the most gut-
wrenching of the series (up there with Cedric's murder, LV's
rebirth, the Shreiking Shack, and the DoM battle), but how
touched/moved was I when DD finally revealed the depth of his love
for Harry? When Harry fixed DD's glasses? Oh, brother, bring on the
tears.
Snape - Taking an Unbreakable Vow? Is he brain dead? Or was this all
part of the plan? DD didn't fear death, we know that, so maybe there
is some higher reasoning behind this (something I'm sure we'll all
speculate to death over the next thousand days!). But Snape, the
Half-Blood Prince? Didn't see that one coming. He must have been a
truly brilliant student to have created that book while still at
school. And I was a bit disappointed that we didn't get to see him
teach DADA more, something that Harry would clearly have been able
to show him up at.
R.A.B. - Regulus Black. Enough said.
The Dursleys - I really hope we get some closure with them in the
next book. I still want to know what Dudley saw when he got
demented. And I am fully curious about the nature of Lily and
Petunia's relationship.
Horcruxes - Nagini, Slytherin Locket, Hufflepuff Cup, Ravenclaw
item, Ring, Diary, LV himself. I can't wait to find out what of
Ravenclaw's there might still be left (I think DD was probably right
about the sword being all that there was left of Godric). The
locket, I think we are mostly in agreement, is somewhere in
Grimmauld Place (good thing Harry inherited it). I don't buy the
theory that Harry is an unintentional horcrux; I think that LV had
already gotten seven of them when he went after the Potters, which
is why he felt confident enough to go up against them that night.
Besides, with all DD confided in him, if he had even thought this
was a possibility he probably would have told Harry.
Peverelle Family? - Also related to the Gaunts, part of LV's
ancestry. Who are they? Who else draws a bloodline from them? Their
ring has been destroyed, but is there anything else left of them?
Family homes - Harry wants to go to Godric's Hollow, see his
parents' house and their graves, about darn time, if you ask me. I
think he'll also be paying visits to the Riddle House and the Gaunt
house during the course of his search for the remaining four
horcruxes. And speaking of Gaunts and Riddles...
Young Tom Riddle - Those were some of the most amazing scenes JKR
has written, IMVHO. The one at the orphanage gave me the shudders
(with the strangled rabbit and all...ooooh...creepy), and to think
about LV crossing Hogwarts' threshold with DD's permission,
terrifying. LV doesn't seem like such a cardboard bad guy anymore,
and the insights into his character are telling (I especially liked
the line where DD asks if Harry is feeling sorry for LV, something
that Harry vehemently denies, but which I think might be true
anyway) and I can see his progression quite clearly now. And I can
also imagine his shock when, after building up in his imagination a
father who was a powerful and strong wizard, discovered that it was
his weak mother, the one who abandoned him to life at the orphanage,
who gave him his powers. And then to discover that his father was
alive and well but had never sought him out, and that his mother's
family was old and pure-blooded and stretched back to Slytherin
himself? Now the ideology he espouses is a little clearer. DD's
description of LV, as someone who prefers to be alone, superior and
in charge, strikes right at the difference between him and Harry:
though Harry needs his alone time (and don't we all), and though he
will have to complete this task by himself (as he has before) it
takes the help of his friends to get him through everything,
something LV will never understand.
Lupin's backstory - I was quite pleased to get some insight into
this character, who is one of my faves. His history with Fenrir
Greyback and his secret mission make me wonder how this book will
sit with the ESE!Lupin postulators.
Neville - Where were you, brave Longbottom boy? Hardly mentioned
until we find out that he was one of the two ex-DA members to come
to Hogwarts' aid during the last battle. Neville is finally coming
out of his father and his grandmother's shadows, and I would kill to
read the letter McGonagall sent to Augusta about him.
Funniest bits - Arthur and Molly's safety questions for entry into
the Burrow. Fred and George's joke shop. Harry and Luna at the Slug
Party (well, there's our vampire). "Won-won!" The canaries. Dobby
still unable to keep from punishing himself. Harry remembering
Dumbledore as he really was ("Nitwit, blubber, oddiment, tweak!").
All classics.
Meri - how soon till the next one?