Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows

Author: JK Rowling

Book 7 (Final) of Harry Potter Series.

Yes, I know it's late, but hey, I'm not a diehard Potter fan who's willing to spend hours queueing up for the book. My sister had preordered one from MPH in Subang, and the other sisters wanted to read it too, so of course as eldest sister I have to mengalah lah kan?

Anyway, I've read all the other Potter books in the correct order, though none of them personally belong to me. I've never reread any of them, and I may not remember every tiny detail (can't even remember exactly what all the Horcruxes were before book 7) so please excuse me if I am not quite up to the mark of a true blue supporter of the Boy Who Lived.

If anyone out there has not read the book, be warned: SPOILERS APLENTY.

Right, so where do I start?

The first couple of chapters were quite gripping. We see Voldermort torturing a captive, and it sets the mood for a dark and sinister ride. Alas, that was about as sinister as it got. If you want a really dark book with real plot twists, go for the second halves of Books Four (Goblet of Fire), Five (Order of the Pheonix) and Six (Half-Blood Prince).

Throughout the book, there's a repetitive pattern: Harry gets caught, almost gets killed, and barely manages to escape. It's okay the first two times, but afterwards it gets a bit predictable. The final instalment, while action-packed, leads to a final showdown between Harry and the Dark Lord (as expected), but somehow ended on a damp Squib. I expected a big duel to shake the very foundations of Hogwarts (there was, after all, a very powerful wand involved) but one zap and that was it? Apparently Rowling didn't want to associate Voldermort with a spectacular ending, but it still would've been fun to see what the Elder Wand could actually do.

I felt Rowling spent too long on the locket Horcrux and rushed through the others. I mean, the locket's been carried over from the last book, and it takes you through half of this one before it's finally destroyed. It reminded me of LOTR where Frodo wears the Ring around his neck, complete with the emotional side effects on the bearer, but I liked that Rowling made it affect Ron Weasley the most and his subsequent role in destroying it.

The eventual revelation that Harry himself was a Horcrux (since Harry had this mental link with Voldermort, it was really no surprise) and had to die in order to destroy Voldermort - this idea seemed to have been borrowed from the Matrix movies. Only Harry somehow didn't die. I suppose destroying Horcruxes really only destroys the soul within it, but the original functionality of the item is sustained, so that's why Harry Potter ended up alive and well. Some people had a problem with that, calling JK Rowling a cop-out, but I can accept it. Besides, didn't the ring Horcrux also turn out to be the Resurrection Stone (more on this later) and function as one?

Prior to the book's release, Rowling did say some characters will die. I wished she'd expanded a bit more on them before they met their ends though. I especially hoped she'd write a bit more about Lupin. I mean, he's a werewolf with issues, who wanted to fill Sirius Black's shoes as Harry's guardian while (according to Harry) running away from his responsibility as a father, so I was looking forward to a bit more about him, even a depiction of how he and Tonks died. Maybe the movie (of course there'll be one) could show a a one-on-one between Lupin and Fenrir Greyback, the baddie werewolf? Just a thought.

The most interesting thing about Book 7, though, is the depiction of flawed characters and redeemed ones. I like flawed characters - hey, no one's perfect. I liked that Dumbledore was not such a goody-goody after all, that even he was tempted by absolute power, albeit at a young age. And that he succumbed to that temptation even at a later phase, when everyone believes him to be wise and the epitome of goodness - it's a pretty refreshing character development. I did feel that Rita Skeeter's biography was a bit tame though. A reflection of real-life media pre-release hype, maybe?

But my favourite, I have to say, is Severus Snape. His character has always been an enigma, right from the start in Book One. You know he's a Death Eater, and that he hates Harry Potter's guts, but somehow Dumbledore trusts him and he's always saving Harry's life. You could always tell there's something about his past that's more than meets the eye, and there's a hint of it in a previous book, in the flashbacks of James Potter and gang taunting him as a student and Lily (Harry's mum) coming to his rescue. I admit that when he killed Dumbledore it shocked me, but Rowling's explanation in Book Seven confirmed my suspicion of his feelings for Lily. In fact, when Harry used the Resurrection Stone, I half expected Severus Snape to be among those joining him.

Throughout the series, I couldn't help wishing that Harry would feel some remorse for how he'd treated Snape. The bit in the Epilogue where Harry's all grown up and about to send his second son, Albus Severus, off to Hogwarts for the first time, satisfied my wish. When he said to Albus, "you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I knew." Snape's death was justified. The rest of the epilogue, though, was unnecessary. Harry ending up with Ginny, and Ron with Hermione, with kids and all? It was just too convenient. Maybe it's to set up the scene for some spin-off series?

Neville ending up as a hero, killing off Nagini the Horcrux, was another gem. I have to admit that after Harry's turn as a snivelling, whingeing teenager in Book Five, I didn't like him so much and didn't want him to have all the glory to himself. So it was wonderful that Neville, so often portrayed as a geek, was the one to wield Godric Gryffindor's sword and destroy the snake. I did find it strange, though, how he managed to pull out the sword from the Sorting Hat after the goblins had reclaimed it as their own. You'd think the goblins would've put up some sort of magical defences to keep the sword in their midst.

Snape's character, I felt, was the most complex and compelling of all. Dumbledore's also was interesting. Lupin's could've been, while the other characters, including Harry himself, sometimes appeared too predictable. James Potter and Sirius Black, to me (and I know this will seriously anger Potter fans) had no real likeable qualities except that one happens to be Harry's dad and the other his godfather with a cool bike.

All in all though, I think Rowling did a wonderful job creating this fantasy world, but it's probably more suited to children than adults. I'm sticking with Tolkien, Weis and Hickman.

Other reviews and comments on this page.

Oh no, not another book review...

Yes, yes, I know some cynics out there will be saying this is just another mediocre no-brainer blog eating up precious cyberspace - but I don't really care okay? Besides it's much easier for me to file something on the Internet, with pre-sorted labels and all, rather than put it down on paper and misplace the notebook and start all over again. And if I'm really unhappy with the way things tuirn out I can always just delete the whole thing.

Anyway, what inspired me to start this blog was a post I read on Lina's blog. It reminded me of those logbooks we had to keep in primary school to encourage reading. Each student would have to make it a point to read something like 10 books a term, and record the name, date, number of pages and a summary of the book. I think there was also a section to list at least 10 new words picked up from the reading material.

Back then it wasn't difficult to chalk up 10 books a term - I read voraciously, was a member the TTDI Children's Library and even dreamt of starting up my own mini-library at home (my sister and I made it a point to collect the whole Enid Blyton rewards series). And at boarding school, it was easy to swap books with friends.

Studying in the UK was a blast as far as books were concerned. I discovered book clubs from the back of magazines or flyers, where introductory member prices were as low as 50p each for 6 books or something like that. While other girls in my hostel received love letters from their boyfriends, I would be anticipating the brown packages that carried these wonderful tales to my bedside. Yes, sad but true.

I read almost anything but murder mysteries and horror (I don't really appreciate getting frightened till I can't sleep at night). The only exception I ever made was for Interview with the Vampire, and even then it was because I was such a huge fan of Tom Cruise so picturing him as Lestat was pretty exciting. And I've only just picked up reading non-fiction and all those management-type books.

Perennial favourites are fantasy and historical fiction. Of course I've had my fair share of Judith McNaught and Mills & Boon, but after a while romances lose their appeal, unless I'm really looking for some fluff with dark hair and cold, steely eyes.

So, like I said before, I'm not expecting anyone to take my reviews seriously. And you shouldn't - there's hardly going to be anything deep, and it's not like I can predict the next Booker Prize winner or anything. You're free to share your own reviews or comments, everyone's entitled to their own opinions. But comments will be moderated, so don't attack anyone personally, okay?

Happy Reading!