Review: #259
Title: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Series: Harry Potter - 6th book
Author: J.K. Rowling
Read Before: yes
My Comments: Very very good, this is the one that answers a lot of questions and reveals a lot of things, including how Voldemort managed to become immortal. It does a bit of retcon, saying that the diary from Chamber of Secrets was a Horcrux, but it’s one that makes perfect sense. It’s less dark than the previous book, and it’s more funny and interesting. Similarly, there’s a really unexpected death at the end of the book, one that would surely shock you (I remembered not believing that it had happened). Furthermore, the suspicions that rose against Snape, it’s hard to decipher where his true allegiance dwells. Even though Harry was right about Malfoy, I found his obsessive behaviour and stubbornness annoying, since he was neglecting everything else (and some that were more important). It was fascinating reading about Voldemort’s background, and how, he too, were only a boy once, making mistakes and not that powerful. The relationship between Harry and Ginny, hinted on late in the last book and a lot more in this one, felt… a bit contrived. As in, Harry suddenly realised that he cannot be without her and becoming jealous. It would have been better if it panned out more slowly. Even though there were a few Quidditch matches, Harry didn't really participate in most of them, and for that, you lost some of the excitement from those matches. There was never a dull moment, at every point in the book; there were something mysterious, something that you were waiting to happen, and something that promises a new revelation. A critical book in the series, and the revelations were worth it.
Rating: 8/10