The Half Blood Prince

Probable spoilers..

Just finished The Half Blood Prince. Still reeling. Totally in shock.

Didn't have any idea what to expect in this book, not having read anything much in the way of rumours. The first chapter worried me that it was going to be all boring and political again. The second chapter left me in shock. After that it settled down and was a pretty good read. Nowhere near as depressing as the Order of the Phoenix. And a lot less rambling tangents.

I was pleased that many of my (and doubtless thousands of others) questions had been answered, yet new ones were created.

For the answered questions, Snape and the DADA job is answered, the whole issue of trust between Dumbledore and Snape is explored, and the ability to do magic without speaking is also touched on. Flitwick is finally mentioned as a head of house (although not specified as Ravenclaw). Also, the problem of Dobby doing magic and Harry being blamed for it is explained, as is the obvious loophole of underage magic in magic households. No mention of Hagrid doing it though, as presumably they'd have been keeping tabs on him doing magic also.

New questions include:

  • How long do wizards live for? Presumably longer than us mere mortals, as Slughorn and Dumbledore were obviously mature-aged when Tom Riddle was a student 50 years before.
  • House elf apparation is still apparently allowed, even if regular apparation is not..? (just found this question answered here)
  • Did Quirrell really only have the DADA job for a year? The movie says "years" although the PS book doesn't actually say years, only implies it.
  • What's the deal with alcohol? It seems that the kids are drinking wine and beer well before they're eighteen.

    This book is really not for little children. It's filled with gruesome descriptions of violence (pools of blood), zombies trying to kill people, teenage romances (which were actually kinda cute), and the word "slut" is used - I kid you not.

    I had trouble getting through the last couple of chapters. Was just too stunned. In disbelief. Definitely didn't see that coming, although hardly surprising given JK Rowling's track record. I wonder who will be next, or if indeed there will be a next book... Obviously something will follow, but whether it's a complete year at Hogwarts, who knows...