Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Well, the day is came out was that the day I read it, following tradition. And I loved it. I thought it was so, so much better than the disappointement that was Order of the Phoenix.
I became immersed the minute it said that the Bones had been attacked. I liked that old woman, she was one of my favourite characters of book 5. This was when I realized that this would be darker than I expected. I found the first chapter rather boring, actually, but slogged through doggedly. But the minute I realized who lived on Spinner's End, I was squeeing. So, we finally get to see where Severus lives, and it ain't grand, gothic old Snape manor.
I have never, ever wavered in my belief that Snape was working for Dumbledore. Snape is stuck in a terrible position, and I think he truly likes Draco. I like Draco a lot more in this book than in the others; I knew the instant Moaning Myrtle mentioned a boy crying that it was Draco. Finally, that two-dimensional bit of spite gets some fleshing out! About time, too, I say.
I also knew Snape was the HBP somewhere in the middle of the book. It was the way Dark Arts were blended in with advanced potions knowledge, the connection of the bezoar, the hopeless grandeur of the title, "Half-Blood Prince". Over and over again the books state Slytherin is for pure-bloods, but there simply aren't enough for the house, and Snape isn't as prejudiced against mixed-bloods as others. He is to a certain extent (he called Lily a Mudblood, he never reprimands Draco when Draco is being prejudiced, and he joined ole Voldie), but he isn't extreme. He knows he's not all wizard, and I don't think it's one of the things that shames him to the core.
The romances bothered me. Not Ron/Lavender, the obvious Ron/Hermione, but Harry/Ginny and Remus/Tonks. The former was not something I'd foreseen, nor was it a pairing I'd ever shipped. Harry/Ginny? Yech. But, I guess it sortof works in canon. But it's still not a pairing I'm fond of.
Remus/Tonks just didn't make sense. I just didn't see it. I didn't see Tonks grieving more for Sirius than Harry was, either. Maybe it's just me, but were there even any hints of Remus/Tonks anywhere before we were told flat-out? Unless Remus' werewolf form is four-footed as apposed to the upright wolf of the movie, why would Tonks' Patronus change to Sirius if all she's wilting from is unrequited love? ...I'm confused...
Can't think of anything else to say... so, this is Amber, signing off.
I became immersed the minute it said that the Bones had been attacked. I liked that old woman, she was one of my favourite characters of book 5. This was when I realized that this would be darker than I expected. I found the first chapter rather boring, actually, but slogged through doggedly. But the minute I realized who lived on Spinner's End, I was squeeing. So, we finally get to see where Severus lives, and it ain't grand, gothic old Snape manor.
I have never, ever wavered in my belief that Snape was working for Dumbledore. Snape is stuck in a terrible position, and I think he truly likes Draco. I like Draco a lot more in this book than in the others; I knew the instant Moaning Myrtle mentioned a boy crying that it was Draco. Finally, that two-dimensional bit of spite gets some fleshing out! About time, too, I say.
I also knew Snape was the HBP somewhere in the middle of the book. It was the way Dark Arts were blended in with advanced potions knowledge, the connection of the bezoar, the hopeless grandeur of the title, "Half-Blood Prince". Over and over again the books state Slytherin is for pure-bloods, but there simply aren't enough for the house, and Snape isn't as prejudiced against mixed-bloods as others. He is to a certain extent (he called Lily a Mudblood, he never reprimands Draco when Draco is being prejudiced, and he joined ole Voldie), but he isn't extreme. He knows he's not all wizard, and I don't think it's one of the things that shames him to the core.
The romances bothered me. Not Ron/Lavender, the obvious Ron/Hermione, but Harry/Ginny and Remus/Tonks. The former was not something I'd foreseen, nor was it a pairing I'd ever shipped. Harry/Ginny? Yech. But, I guess it sortof works in canon. But it's still not a pairing I'm fond of.
Remus/Tonks just didn't make sense. I just didn't see it. I didn't see Tonks grieving more for Sirius than Harry was, either. Maybe it's just me, but were there even any hints of Remus/Tonks anywhere before we were told flat-out? Unless Remus' werewolf form is four-footed as apposed to the upright wolf of the movie, why would Tonks' Patronus change to Sirius if all she's wilting from is unrequited love? ...I'm confused...
Can't think of anything else to say... so, this is Amber, signing off.