Pop quiz time! Who is the Half-Blood Prince? Is it: a) Draco Malfoy; b) Harry Potter; c) You-Know-Who; or d) none of the above. If you’re like me, you were totally caught up in that burning question that plagued every Harry Potter fan’s mind since the release of the title of JK Rowling’s sixth book: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. And if you really were like me, you caught that “Midnight Madness” and waited anxiously for the clock to strike midnight on July 16 to receive the newest installment of the addictive series. Upon reading it in record time, you also discovered that the Half-Blood Prince was d) none of the above. Now, I’m going to take this time to warn those of you who somehow haven’t read HP6--I’ll be throwing out a few spoilers, so consider yourself warned.
True to form, Rowling starts off her novel right where she left off but throws everyone a curveball. Professor Snape makes an Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa Malfoy, Draco’s mother. Turns out, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named chose Draco for a very dangerous mission–now with Snape watching his back. Shortly thereafter, Harry arrives at Hogwarts to finds out Snape is not teaching Potions but instead has been promoted to his dream job, Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.
A new Potions professor has mistakenly provided Harry with a Bewitched Potions book belonging to the Half-Blood Prince, as Harry soon discovers.
Adding to the intrigue, Harry has grown even more suspicious (and you thought it wasn’t possible) of Snape and Malfoy.
On a cheerier note, Ronnie finally gets a girlfriend.
Harry and Dumbledore explore the world of Tom Riddle via Pensieve, which leads to their race to eliminate Voldemort’s Horcruxes. (What are Horcruxes, you ask? I’m not at liberty to say. Read the book.) Dumbledore finds his health failing upon their return, where a Dark Mark looms threateningly over Hogwarts.We find Dumbledore at the mercy of the Half-Blood Prince, someone he has trusted throughout the entire series. Who is it and how do they betray Dumbledore’s trust? You’ll just have to read the book to find out.
That’s where we’re left–with the two main mentor figures now out of Harry’s life and only one book left, we can only imagine what’s going to happen next. Given the somber yet optimistic note the book ended on, I’m crossing my fingers and waiting for the seventh book.
HP6 was a bit shorter than Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (book five), but lacking none of the action, adventure and drama. There’s suspense and danger around every corner for Harry, and Rowling made sure to pack the book full of staggering surprises–she never seems to run out of tricks, amazingly enough.
Half-Blood Prince definitely takes on more mature tones as Harry’s approaching his coming-of-age in the wizarding world, and that impending face off with Voldemort has me itching for more. If you’ve not read it yet, what are you waiting for? I’ve got to give it five out of five stars–modern literature doesn’t get much better than this.