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adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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:
Yes
This is probably the saddest Harry Potter book in my opinion. Although it is highly essential to the storyline, this book has always been the hardest one for me to get through. It is pretty much 870 pages of Harry being sad, upset, and mistreated. It is the reality of what he is going through at this point in the series, so no matter how much it hurts, we do need it to understand the entire plot, and to understand the depth of Harry’s feelings.
Although the book is obviously extremely dark and sad, there are a lot of key elements to this book that are majorly important. We get to meet the lovely Professor Umbridge! I will stand by the fact that she is worse than Voldemort, HA! She is quite literally the worst character in this franchise — I have never hated a character more than I hate her! She is a superb villain though, and this book does an amazing job at making me seethe whenever she is in a scene, complete with her obnoxious little cough. I do love the way that the other professors react to her though, especially Professor McGonagall. We also of course love the centaurs, obviously.
I do love that we get more insight into Snape’s past and the reasoning behind his deep hatred of Harry. However, this does open another can of worms for me with my opinion on Snape. Specifically, that exact hatred of poor Harry for something that his father did to him…but I will not go into that! Regardless, it is a great part of the story and it adds a lot of depth to Snape’s character development, so I do appreciate it.
Of course there is one part of this book that I will never be able to get over and if you know, you know. I will not discuss it here, but I swear I will never recover from it.
This book does a fantastic job with its storytelling and setting the reader up for the rest of the series. I am excited to read Half Blood Prince next and to continue being at Hogwarts at the peak of all of the chaos! I rate this book 5/5 stars! 🌟
Although the book is obviously extremely dark and sad, there are a lot of key elements to this book that are majorly important. We get to meet the lovely Professor Umbridge! I will stand by the fact that she is worse than Voldemort, HA! She is quite literally the worst character in this franchise — I have never hated a character more than I hate her! She is a superb villain though, and this book does an amazing job at making me seethe whenever she is in a scene, complete with her obnoxious little cough. I do love the way that the other professors react to her though, especially Professor McGonagall. We also of course love the centaurs, obviously.
I do love that we get more insight into Snape’s past and the reasoning behind his deep hatred of Harry. However, this does open another can of worms for me with my opinion on Snape. Specifically, that exact hatred of poor Harry for something that his father did to him…but I will not go into that! Regardless, it is a great part of the story and it adds a lot of depth to Snape’s character development, so I do appreciate it.
Of course there is one part of this book that I will never be able to get over and if you know, you know. I will not discuss it here, but I swear I will never recover from it.
This book does a fantastic job with its storytelling and setting the reader up for the rest of the series. I am excited to read Half Blood Prince next and to continue being at Hogwarts at the peak of all of the chaos! I rate this book 5/5 stars! 🌟
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder
Moderate: Violence, Death of parent
Minor: Torture
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Everyone in this book is insufferably whiny, yet I still am distraught over Sirius’ death. Go figure.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Torture
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Racial slurs, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Beautiful illustrations and an entertaining story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Torture, Death of parent
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, War
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Torture, Murder
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The majority of the book was enjoyable to read. There are a few grammatical errors scattered throughout the novel. Some of the paragraphs were confusing and required re-reading a few times to understand JKs intentions. I liked how the book focused on a lot of smaller details about magical objects and relationships between characters.
As books for teens/young adults go, I wouldn't say this is the best series, but if you're a fan of the movies, I'd absolutely recommend reading the books
As books for teens/young adults go, I wouldn't say this is the best series, but if you're a fan of the movies, I'd absolutely recommend reading the books
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Torture, Death of parent
Minor: Bullying, Alcohol
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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
Every time I've tried to read this I have never been able to make it through this book. I think that the length was scary to me as a child and that, along with how Harry acts in the first half of the books, always deterred me from getting anywhere past the half-way point. Now, as an adult, I was determined to get through this book.
1. It's not as long as it looks. Once I picked up this book it didn't take all that long to finish. Reading it on my Kindle definitely helped with that - I could pick it up whenever I had some spare time.
2. Teenager problems. The fact that Harry is fifteen in this book is extremely hard to miss. He is moody, acting out, and being overly dramatic at every available opportunity. When I was reading this book around the same age, I found Harry's attitude to be a bit grating. Now, I find it to be petty and unnecessary. I gave the same complaint with this book as I did with the last one: the trio argue way too often. I feel like it's a bit better in this book because there aren't as many overlapping plot points, but it still got to the point where I was questioning the point of it all. I also, once again, find Harry's lack of communication to be a bit infuriating. We've been through this for five books at this point, just talk to your friends!
3. The Marauders. I love the look at Hogwarts-aged Marauders and Snape that we get towards the end of the book. The conflict Harry feels about his father and Sirius was really well done, even if it was resolved a bit too quickly (in my opinion).
4. A bit of political intrigue, as a treat. I love the small glimpses of the Ministry of Magic that are scattered throughout the book. One of my favorite things about the HP series is how rich the world feels and how easy it is to be sucked into it. Seeing Fudge turn against Harry and show his true, paranoid, control-hungry nature was super interesting to me. Watching the power he gave Umbridge over the school, all in the name of ridding Dumbledore of his status was a wild twist that I wasn't expecting but really really enjoyed. </spoilers> I really hope that type of political side drama continues in the next books.
Overall, I had a great time reading the last 50% of this book. It gets off to a slow start but, in the end, it feels like it was a worthwhile read. I'm excited to continue the series!
1. It's not as long as it looks. Once I picked up this book it didn't take all that long to finish. Reading it on my Kindle definitely helped with that - I could pick it up whenever I had some spare time.
2. Teenager problems. The fact that Harry is fifteen in this book is extremely hard to miss.
3. The Marauders.
4. A bit of political intrigue, as a treat. I love the small glimpses of the Ministry of Magic that are scattered throughout the book. One of my favorite things about the HP series is how rich the world feels and how easy it is to be sucked into it.
Overall, I had a great time reading the last 50% of this book. It gets off to a slow start but, in the end, it feels like it was a worthwhile read. I'm excited to continue the series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Physical abuse, Blood
Moderate: Death, Violence, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture