Harry Potter book 7 *spoiler alert*

[CrimsonMaiden]

So for those of you who have read it... what did you think? Did you love it? Did you hate it? What was the most disappointing event? Who was your favorite in this book? etc

I'll put my thoughts in another post so I don't have any spoilers showing up in mouseovers on the main page.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

My disappointing moments: death of Hedwig, Fred, Tonks, and Lupin. While I am happy that neither Ron or Hermione got the axe, I hated that she killed off Fred.

I think it was interesting to see that some of what was guessed in the previous thread about what could be in the book actually happened: Snape really was working with Dumbledore the whole time, Harry was a horcrux (I probably spelled that wrong.)

Something I still don't understand though is why Harry didn't die when Voldemort hit him with the killing curse. Why didn't it kill him? If it was only because he put himself forward to die willingly then why didn't his mom survive when she did the same for him?

 

[jayce1066]

I thought Tonks was underused ever since she came on stage in Order of the Phoenix. I was disappointed she got so little face time in this last book.

 

[starrkers]

Disclaimer: I read it very fast, so I could hand it on to the daughter (who is now halfway through and being bugged every half hour by her brother for it), and will have to reread to pick up some of the finer points.

I think the epilogue is hideous and adds nothing to the story. I would've been much happier with a "six months later" type wrapup.
At the end of the book Voldemort is dead, but there is an awful lot to do - what happens to Hogwarts? Who becomes headmaster? Do Ron, Hermione and Harry return to complete their NEWTS? What careers they choose? How do the powers that be manage to round up the Dementors and get them back to Azkaban? What about the giants? And all Aragog's descendents currently roaming around Hogwarts?

The death of Hedwig was nasty. I can see why it was done, but the plot problem could've been just as easily solved if Hedwig had been lent to the Weasleys instead (after all, poor old Errol was beyond the task now).
Lupin was turned into a total prat in this one. Annoying. And Tonks, so well drawn in Phoenix, has had little to do since. Waste of a good character.
The whole reason for Snape being a good guy (his undying love for Lily) is lame.
Fred's death (why couldn't it have been that git Percy? Oh well) - all the Weasleys are suitably distraught and being a family, except Ron. He stays with Hermione and Harry. Doesn't ring true after his earlier great desire to know of his family's continued safety.

 

[cantdog]

No one said she could write, did they?

 

[starrkers]

No one said she could write, did they?

I am never going to be hypocritical enough to say she can't write - I've bought and read all her books in the series, after all.

 

[FallingToFly]

This is why there is fanfiction.

I hated that Draco got NOTHING in this book- tortured and tormented as he was, a child being a pawn in a power game, he deserved better. Ron being a total prick and still being a "hero" pissed me off. I thought the whole book was shoddy, half-assed and really rushed. I hated it.

Then again, after seven years of living with the hype, Rowling probably does as well, which is why this book reflected all of the afore-mentioned qualities.

*goes back to playing with someone else's characters for a while, since all of hers are being bitches.*

 

[sereneone4u]

I hated the way Lupin was portrayed, made no sense. I thought Tonks and Lucious where underused.

I think there will be a new series that will answer all those questions...they mentioned how Bellatrix looked at Voldemort like a lover....a son? One possibly raised to hate the Potters? Wanting to resurrect his father...who knows? I think there will be a new series.

 

[galaxygoddess]

is it sad that I still have no clue who the hell "tonks" is?


I've been asking this for over a year now and I always get "you're not a real fan"

ok so I only saw the movies, so was tonks only in the books or something?

 

[Wildcard Ky]

is it sad that I still have no clue who the hell "tonks" is?


I've been asking this for over a year now and I always get "you're not a real fan"

ok so I only saw the movies, so was tonks only in the books or something?

Tonks is an Auror that only has a small role in the OOP movie. Her role is much larger in books 5 and 6. She winds up marrying Lupin, though she is much younger than he.

It's definitely been left open for another series. Lupins son being some form of werewolf, but going through Hogwarts......... Malfoys child entering Hogwarts at the same time as one of Harrys kids. There's no way she would introduce a half blind dragon, set it loose over the UK, then forget about it either. It all adds up to another series within the next 4-5 years.

Where did Neville get the sword? Did I miss something?

 

[K-Girl]

Where did Neville get the sword? Did I miss something?

Neville pulled the sword out of the burning Sorting Hat.

 

[jayce1066]

Part of the deal is this, for the rest of her days, Rowling doesn't really need to write anything more than her name on large checks. She could even hire someone to do that.
I don't agree with every choice she made, but there is no denying that she is a hell of a story teller.

 

[rgraham666]

The Sorting Hat bought it?

No! I liked the Sorting Hat.

 

[starrkers]

The Sorting Hat bought it?

No! I liked the Sorting Hat.

I'm not totally sure the Sorting Hat is destroyed. It may just be a bit more dilapidated . I'd like to think so, anyway.

 

[elsol]

*yawn*

The deaths:

It's a war... people die. She didn't shy away from that, though she did not kill a main character. Colin Creevy was the one that shocked me; I was not expecting it.

I did not like that she did not redeem the Harry's generation of slytherin.

Such a big deal through out about the houses working together and in the end only the prior generation of slytherin was redeemed: Slughorn, Snape, Narcissa.

My favorite thing:

The list of people who destroyed horcruxes was well spread out.

Harry, Hermione, Ron, Dumbledore, Neville, Voldemort, Voldemort's followers


Mrs. Weasley vs. Bellatrix... I cannot wait to see that in the movie.

---

I always thought the best ending to the series was 'six years' later to have Harry return to be the Dark Arts Teacher. But I have to admit, it is one of the few books that left me with a feeling of closure. I don't really have any questions about 'this' story.

---

Personally, i believe bloomsbury will pay JK a SHITLOAD of money to allow other authors to play in the universe.

Grindevald vs. Dumbledore is a story just begging to be written.

 

[elsol]

Something I still don't understand though is why Harry didn't die when Voldemort hit him with the killing curse. Why didn't it kill him? If it was only because he put himself forward to die willingly then why didn't his mom survive when she did the same for him?

There's a couple of possible answers to that:

1. The Elder Wand would not kill Harry... and it had an out because there were two souls inhabiting the body.

a. Voldemort's part soul
b. Harry's soul

With another target available, the Elder directed the spell at the soul it was willing to kill.

2. Voldemort was asking like a Horcrux for Harry.

 

[BlackShanglan]

This is the first of the books I've read. I've watched the first four movies, which were uneven in quality, but I liked them well enough to be curious about how it would all end and to not want to wait for a movie to tell me.

I'm immensely well-pleased with the book and found it very satisfying, but then I have a skewed perspective. The chief reason I wanted to read the book was to see what happened to Severus Snape. Ms. Rowling did not disappoint. I particularly liked that despite the fact that I'd gone in hoping to see him redeemed and guessed at what were ultimately the good motives for his actions, she kept me on the hook nonetheless. I knew that it was possible for it to work out as I hoped, but I had no sense of certainty that it would, and the tension was very nicely maintained.

I have to agree that Lupin and Tonks seemed to suffer from authorial uncertainty as to what to do with them. The same is true of Bill and Fleur. I was also disappointed that Harry never really seemed to regret or rethink his decision to cheat Griphook the Goblin in their bargain for the sword. I'd have liked to have seen a more thorough resolution there.

Still, overall it was very good work in terms of plotting and tension, and I enjoyed her imagination in scenes like the Lestrange vault with the burning/multiplying curse. My only real complaints were on the "fine polish" level. I found her physical descriptions sometimes a bit hackneyed (although only here and there) and the account of Harry's emotions toward Ginny wincingly bad. I also wish with all my heart that she did not feel compelled to render accents by writing sentences like "'Arry? 'Ooo eez zat in zere wit' you?" Ugh. A little of that goes a really long way. But it wasn't enough to derail me, and certainly not enough to dull my appreciation for her pleasantly bittersweet messages about people we love and the ways they live in and through us - and the ways in which sometimes they can simply be wrong, as with Sirius and the house elf, or James Potter and the young Severus Snape. I enjoyed the continual awareness through the book that loving people includes being able to forgive them for genuinely painful acts.

 

[BlackShanglan]

One thing that did baffled me ...

Harry's Cloak of Invisibility is meant to be one of the three Hallows, and to be identifiable as such by the perfection of its power - impossible to dispell, doesn't wear out, can't be seen through by any means. But when Nagini, disguised as Barthilda Bagshot, meets them outside of the ruins of the Potters' old home, she seems to see through the enchantment. Did I miss an explanation of why that was possible? Or should I just be looking gently past it and declining to become Comic Book Guy over the small inconsistency?

 

[starrkers]

Harry's Cloak of Invisibility is meant to be one of the three Hallows, and to be identifiable as such by the perfection of its power - impossible to dispell, doesn't wear out, can't be seen through by any means. But when Nagini, disguised as Barthilda Bagshot, meets them outside of the ruins of the Potters' old home, she seems to see through the enchantment. Did I miss an explanation of why that was possible? Or should I just be looking gently past it and declining to become Comic Book Guy over the small inconsistency?

There are a number of times through the books where it is hinted at people being aware of Harry under the cloak. I have to reread this last book to formulate a solid thought train on this question.

On the Harry cheating Griphook thing, I thought that was resolved when Bill told Harry that Goblins see goblin made items as always belonging to the goblin, and each subsequent owner needing to pay for it. Griphook says Gryffindor stole the sword. But it maybe that he inherited it from someone else. I thought Harry justified his intended actions that way.
Besides, didn't Griphook have the sword the last time he was seen?
It magically appeared for Neville out of the Sorting Hat.

 

[CrimsonMaiden]

Harry's Cloak of Invisibility is meant to be one of the three Hallows, and to be identifiable as such by the perfection of its power - impossible to dispell, doesn't wear out, can't be seen through by any means. But when Nagini, disguised as Barthilda Bagshot, meets them outside of the ruins of the Potters' old home, she seems to see through the enchantment. Did I miss an explanation of why that was possible? Or should I just be looking gently past it and declining to become Comic Book Guy over the small inconsistency?

There were times throughout the series were Dumbledore knew Harry was under the cloak, so I wondered about that myself.

 

[Lee Chambers]

I've never ready any of the books and seen all five movies. My friend is a huge harry potter fan (strangely enough he didn't buy the last book and simply read the synopsis that was posted on Wikipedia) and he's filled me in on a lot of things the movies left out. But like others I wanted to know how it ended without waiting for movies, so I bought the book.

First off, I fucking cried when Dobby got killed. I don't know why, but when I got to the part where Harry inscribed the stone with his epitaph, I just lost it. Dobby rode into the Malfoy mansion like the mother fucking cavalry of God and Bellatrix took him out with her god damned knife. When Mrs. Weasly went after her, I was like "PUT THAT BITCH IN THE FUCKING GROUND!"

Secondly, I think she did a pretty good job considering how much she crammed into this damn book. I heard that they cut a lot out of the Order of the Phoenix movie and I can only imagine how much is going to get cut out of this one as well.

I, for one, liked the way she played out Snape. I've always thought of Snape as being a good guy even if he was a creepy and evil bastard.

I could pick the whole thing apart bit by bit, but overall I was happy with the way it ended. I've never been a die hard fan of the series and I'm pretty easy to please when it comes to stories and storylines. Yes, there were some rough spots, but all things considered, she did very well.

As for a continuing series, it's all going to depend on her. I heard that after she finished writing the last book that she went to her hotel room and cleaned out the mini-bar. She's said before that she will never be able to duplicate the success of Harry Potter. And since her work isn't done with two more movies left to make, I would imagine she's ready for a well deserved vacation.

 

[BlackShanglan]

On the Harry cheating Griphook thing, I thought that was resolved when Bill told Harry that Goblins see goblin made items as always belonging to the goblin, and each subsequent owner needing to pay for it. Griphook says Gryffindor stole the sword. But it maybe that he inherited it from someone else. I thought Harry justified his intended actions that way.
Besides, didn't Griphook have the sword the last time he was seen?
It magically appeared for Neville out of the Sorting Hat.

I understood the differing perspectives on historical ownership of the sword (and they were very interesting); what bothered me was that Harry drove an actual bargain with Griphook, promising the sword if Griphook helped them break into Gringott's. Whatever differences they had on the topic of Godric Gryffindor's claim to the sword, Harry promised the sword to Griphook for helping him, not because of Gryffindor's alleged theft. Griphook turns out not to be a terribly savory character, but he did lie to Bellatrix at Harry's request, and risk severe punishment for that, and he did refrain from stealing the sword outright, taking it only when he'd already completed his end of the bargain. It bothered me that Harry never stepped back and saw Hermione's point - that it was wrong to deceive Griphook by playing with the letter of the agreement they'd made, knowing that it wasn't in the spirit of the deal. It simply perpetuated every negative stereotype goblins had of wizards.

But then, one of the things I really enjoyed in the book was the way in which Rowling keeps coming back to the painful but human fact that people we love and admire can still do wrong things. Perhaps this is a bad choice of Harry's that we have to accept - a misstep in his attempt to balance "the greater good" with individual responsibility.

 

[MrsDeathlynx]

Something I still don't understand though is why Harry didn't die when Voldemort hit him with the killing curse. Why didn't it kill him? If it was only because he put himself forward to die willingly then why didn't his mom survive when she did the same for him?

The only thing that I can guess on that one is the fact that Harry did it for the greater good rather than just one person like his mum did, but other than that I don't think they really say...Not to mention as elsol said Harry had a piece of Voldemorte's soul in him, which would be the same as the wand killing his master, that's the more likely now that I think about it.

At the end of the book Voldemort is dead, but there is an awful lot to do - what happens to Hogwarts? Who becomes headmaster? Do Ron, Hermione and Harry return to complete their NEWTS? What careers they choose? How do the powers that be manage to round up the Dementors and get them back to Azkaban? What about the giants? And all Aragog's descendents currently roaming around Hogwarts?

The death of Hedwig was nasty. I can see why it was done, but the plot problem could've been just as easily solved if Hedwig had been lent to the Weasleys instead (after all, poor old Errol was beyond the task now).
Lupin was turned into a total prat in this one. Annoying. And Tonks, so well drawn in Phoenix, has had little to do since. Waste of a good character.
The whole reason for Snape being a good guy (his undying love for Lily) is lame.
Fred's death (why couldn't it have been that git Percy? Oh well) - all the Weasleys are suitably distraught and being a family, except Ron. He stays with Hermione and Harry. Doesn't ring true after his earlier great desire to know of his family's continued safety.

I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up being McGonagall being the new headmaster, mostly because she was the one that took charge. Although it would be funny to see one of the Weasley parents take over, lol. As far as getting the dementors back to Azkaban I would imagine with Kingsley, Harry and the other professors and witches and wizards that weren't mentioned in the book that they could do it, although I see many issues with it. Aragog's descendants look to Hagrid, in fact in the book they say they won't harm Hagrid so I think he would be key getting them back into the forest.
As far as Snape goes I see the whole reason as him being a good guy is becuase of the promise that he made to Dumbledoor, if he hadn't of made that promise I don't think that his love for Lily would have mattered. I totally agree on Fred's death, though I do have to say Dobby's was the one that made me the most sad cause I loved Dobby.

I hated that Draco got NOTHING in this book- tortured and tormented as he was, a child being a pawn in a power game, he deserved better.

They spent so much time building Draco up over the last couple of books that I agree, I would have liked to see him in a much bigger role instead of turning him into a pussy like they did. Not being able to kill Dumbledoor I understand, but to dismiss him like that is another thing entirely...

Mrs. Weasley vs. Bellatrix... I cannot wait to see that in the movie.

---

I always thought the best ending to the series was 'six years' later to have Harry return to be the Dark Arts Teacher. But I have to admit, it is one of the few books that left me with a feeling of closure. I don't really have any questions about 'this' story.

I can't wait to see that one either, I was doing a happy dance when I saw Mrs. Weasley actually use her spells for something other than housework. Just goes to show that you should beware those who don't showcase their talent becuase you never know what's going to happen.

As far as Harry taking the job I can and don't see it, both at the same time. I can see it because there is no one better, then again I don't because I don't see Harry taking the teacherly role, perhaps Hermoine.

Harry's Cloak of Invisibility is meant to be one of the three Hallows, and to be identifiable as such by the perfection of its power - impossible to dispell, doesn't wear out, can't be seen through by any means. But when Nagini, disguised as Barthilda Bagshot, meets them outside of the ruins of the Potters' old home, she seems to see through the enchantment. Did I miss an explanation of why that was possible? Or should I just be looking gently past it and declining to become Comic Book Guy over the small inconsistency?

I'm not sure anyone other than Dumbledoor and Nagini saw him, but then again I could be wrong. Nagini is simple, she is a person with different senses than any of the humans. Dumbledoor is a little more complex, but I think it is because he was so educated on the Hallows and he had studied the cloak for years before he gave it to Harry.

I liked the book, some of it was slow moving then again that is the way that things end up in her books sometimes and I wasn't surprised. Tonks and Lupin didn't really have role's in it, for that I was disappointed just like everyone else seems to be. And I'm sorry but after turning Draco into such a pussy who would want to marry someone that couldn't even defend their own family? But overall I did like the book, but I do have to say I knew from the beginning that Dumbledoor and Snape planned his death, to me that bit of it was too obvious not to see. I know this sounds strange but my favorite part was when Mrs. Weasley actually fought, breaking her away from the housewife role and showing that appearances are very deceiving, that goes for Neville as well.

 

[BlackShanglan]

The whole reason for Snape being a good guy (his undying love for Lily) is lame.

Hmmm. I read it a bit differently. I think that his love for Lily was the thing that first got him to re-examine his actions, but like MrsDeathLynx I didn't see it as the whole and final answer.

Snape was a bitter and neglected child, and that leaves him open both to forming a very intense attachment to someone who was kind to him and to falling prey to elitist and power-hungry cults like the Death-Eaters, so that worked as opening psychology. But too, Rowling has a steady theme running through the book about people being able to make themselves into something better than they are. The only thing that could unmake a Horcrux was remorse; that's a really nice symbol when you get down to it. If you're evil and crave personal power above all things, even to desiring not to submit to Death, then you do give away your soul in little pieces throughout your life - and the only way to get your soul back and become a whole person is to feel remorse and to learn to love others. Part of that is forgiveness as well; Ron and Harry, for instance, have to be able to forgive each other in order to return to being friends, and they are better people for it.

I see Lily Potter as Snape's first lifeline leading to that life of remorse and of love - and for that reason I think he may very well have venerated her always, because she was more than his first love. She saved his soul. She got him to turn to Dumbledore and to take up the burden of trying to care for another person - Harry. Once he had accepted that role, it looks like Dumbledore did a great deal to keep growing and fostering that good that was in him, teaching him to love Lily unselfishly instead of greedily, to care about what would have made her happy instead of just what he wanted, and to trust Dumbledore and to care for him as well as Harry. Too, Dumbledore taught him that as well as remorse, there is forgiveness. He showed Snape that there was a place for him in the hearts and trust of good people. Ultimately, however snappishly Snape expressed it, I think he loved Dumbledore; he sees a real threat to his own soul in killing him, and he balks several times at the request. I think he loved Harry, as well; when Dumbledore tells him that Harry must die, he's torn between anger and despair. But most impressively, I think that in the end he loved his fellow men, and he upheld their rights and sought to protect them because it was the right thing to do. By letting Harry see that Dumbledore's plans required him to sacrifice himself, Snape gave up his last connection to Lily - in order to uphold the real greater good.

That's how I read it, and I suppose that that is why I liked it. I didn't see Snape merely as a man loyal to the memory of someone he loved obsessively; I saw him, ultimatey, as a man redeemed, someone who'd fought the most difficult spiritual battle imaginable and come up on the side of good.

 

[Night_Jasmine]

AK #1 - Harry had all three parts of the "Deathly Hallows" and had become a master of death. As such, his spirit did not pass into the afterlife, while Voldemort's did.

AK#2 - In HBP, Draco disarmed Dumbledore on the tower, which gave him mastery over the Elder Wand. When Harry disarmed Draco in DH, both the Elder Wand and the dragon heartstring one he'd taken from Draco at Malfoy Manor became his. Simply put, the Elder Wand refused to work at full strength. I think the expelliarmus helped rebound the AK.

All in all, I do not consider this JK's best book in the series. To me, there were things left open and it seemed like she was stretching too hard to fill in the gaps. One thing I had issues was the fact that Harry, all of a sudden, realizes he's a descendent of Salazar Slytherin and Gaunt through the Pervell family. He's had no exposure to any family tree of the Potter family, so how was he able to determine this? I saw a brief tree of Slytherin's family in Wikki and saw how the Potters fit into it. However, this leaves one thing...Harry's gift of Parsel tongue and other "Slytherin' Traits were HONESTLY inherited and not left over from the horcrux issue after the murder attempt in Godric's HOllow when he was a baby.

Another disagreement I had was Lupin's attitude towards Tonks and the baby. It just didn't fit the development she'd given to his character over the books! On top of that, marrying so fast? He was petrified to let her near him in HBP.

Dragon - yes...that's a problem. Also, the 'deilluminator' that Dumbledore left Ron. I mean - come on! A blue light entering him and then disapparating him to the others? That made no sense at all either.

On top of that - the limited use of the Malfoy family (I would have loved to have seen them defect to the Light after Dumbledore's death, honestly. Voldemort would have killed Draco for not following orders!), cheap deaths of Lupin and Tonks. Something I'd have like to have seen is Neville getting closure for his parents by confronting Bellatrix. Molly Weasley killing her left me with a nasty taste in my mouth. Snape's death was 'chicken shit.' COME ON! This guy has been the one you love to hate and he gets killed by Nagini in a very cheap way.

Let's NOT go into Ginny/Harry pairing at all. I'd rather see him with Luna than her. She's always struck me as seeing the "Boy Who Lived" and not Harry.

Good point - I loved the redemption of Kreacher...that to me was a wonderful touch.

Honest opinion - recall the books and JK - get off your butt and REWRITE this thing!!!