Author- JK Rowling
Series- Harry Potter
Published- 2005
Page Count- 607 (Original UK Hardcover)
Publishing House- Bloomsbury
Rating- 5/5 stars
About the Author
There is a lot of information about JK Rowling on her website, so I've picked the key bits for this section.
Jo conceived the idea of Harry Potter in 1990 while sitting on a delayed train from Manchester to London King’s Cross. Over the next five years, she began to map out all seven books of the series. She wrote mostly in longhand and gradually built up a mass of notes, many of which were scribbled on odd scraps of paper.
It is the middle of the summer, but there is a unseasonal mist pressing against the windowpanes. Harry Potter is waiting nervously in his bedroom at the Dursleys' house in Privet Drive for a visit from Professor Dumbledore himself. One of the last times he saw the Headmaster was in a fierce one-to-one duel with Lord Voldemort, and Harry can't quite believe that Professor Dumbledore will actually appear at the Dursleys' of all places. Why is the Professor coming to visit him now? What is it that cannot wait until Harry returns to Hogwarts in a few weeks' time? Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts has already got off to an unusual start, as the worlds of Muggle and magic start to intertwine...
Taken from Goodreads
Opinions
I'll be honest and say that I have mixed feelings about Half-Blood Prince. Either I love it or I hate it. There are a lot of questionable decisions, but there are moments that I love. I know that this is some people's favourites, but for me, it's somewhere in the middle.
Harry and Ginny's relationship is probably my favourite part of HBP (Half-Blood Prince) as I always wanted them to end up together. In the books, it's written beautifully and there's a slow build in their relationship. I feel as though the movies did it no justice and it was rushed. I know there are lots of people who feel the same as I do.
While I love Harry and Ginny's relationship, one relationship this book could have done without was Ron and Lavender's. I'm not sure Ron ever liked her, I just think he liked the idea of having a girlfriend. It was obvious throughout the time he and Lavender where together, he was doing it to make Hermione jealous. I did find the way they broke up to be really funny, especially in the movie with all the teachers gathered there.
I have mixed feelings about Draco being a death eater. I feel as though Rowling made Draco a death eater to make him a less likeable character. I feel as though at this point Draco deserved a redemption arc and got dragged further into the mud. I think that following his actions, he will be psychologically scarred.
I've mentioned this in most of my reviews this week, but Dumbledore makes some questionable decisions in teacher appointing and Slughorn is no exception. While he is a good potions teacher, Dumbledore only brought him back so he could get something from him. He also appointed Snape as the Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher, which is another questionable decision.
Dumbledore and the lessons he gives Harry are so good, and yet there was definitely the sense that Dumbledore was holding back. As interesting as it is to learn about Voldemort, I felt as though we didn't learn enough and the information wasn't that useful to Harry and the others. Dumbledore was also very pressuring and could be quite manipulative towards Harry.
Arragog's death was really sad and I felt so sad for Hagrid. Even though I don't like spiders, I felt sorry for Hagrid. It was one of his closest friends and Slughorn did use Arragog's death to get venom. The scene with Harry, Slughorn and Hagrid was really heart-warming, but it was also quite dark as Harry had to admit that he knew he was going to die and that must be quite hard to accept when you're 16.
Dumbledore's death made me bawl my eyes out. Following the events in the cave and finding the fake Horcrux, his death felt as though it was in vain. Harry is unable to do anything broke my heart and Draco being forced to kill him just made me an emotional wreck. It was amazing how everyone came together for Dumbledore's death and showed the resilience of the wizarding community.
The Half-Blood Prince is revealed as Snape was really unexpected but it did make Harry look like an idiot. How long has he been reading potions instructions on the board to not recognise Snape's handwriting? A part of me pities Snape, but I still find him a loathsome character.
As with my other reviews, here are my honourable mentions from HBP:
- Harry, Hermione and Ron following Draco.
- Draco breaking Harry's nose.
- Harry sassing Snape.
- Harry and Ginny getting together.
- Harry and Ron's Christmas at the Burrow.
- Weasely's Wizard Wheezes.
- Kreacher and Dobby following Draco.
- Lupin and Tonks getting together.
Carenza x
