Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

The Final Chapter
Harry has been burdened with a dark, dangerous and seemingly impossible task: that of locating and destroying Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes. Never has Harry felt so alone, or faced a future so full of shadows. But Harry must somehow find within himself the strength to complete the task he has been given. He must leave the warmth, safety and companionship of The Burrow and follow without fear or hesitation the inexorable path laid out for him.

In this final, seventh installment of the Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling unveils in spectactular fashion the answers to the many questions that have been so eagerly awaited. The spellbinding, richly woven narrative, which plunges, twists and turns at a breathtaking pace, confirms the author as a mistress of storytelling, whose books will be read, reread and read again.

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Begin at the Beginning

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Hardcover Paperback

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

* Harry's first trip to the zoo with the Dursleys, when a boa constrictor winks at him. * When the Dursleys' house is suddenly besieged by letters for Harry from Hogwarts. Readers learn how much the Dursleys have been keeping from Harry. Rowling does a wonderful job in displaying the lengths to which Uncle Vernon will go to deny that magic exists. * Harry's first visit to Diagon Alley with Hagrid. Full of curiosities and rich with magic and marvel, Harry's first trip includes a trip to Gringotts and Ollivanders, where Harry gets his wand (holly and phoenix feather) and discovers yet another connection to He-Who-Must-No-Be-Named. This moment is the reader's first full introduction to Rowling's world of witchcraft and wizards. * Harry's experience with the Sorting Hat.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

* The de-gnoming of the Weasleys' garden. Harry discovers that even wizards have chores--gnomes must be grabbed (ignoring angry protests "Gerroff me! Gerroff me!"), swung about (to make them too dizzy to come back), and tossed out of the garden--this delightful scene highlights Rowling's clever and witty genius. * Harry's first experience with a Howler, sent to Ron by his mother. * The Duelling Club battle between Harry and Malfoy. Gilderoy Lockhart starts the Duelling Club to help students practice spells on each other, but he is not prepared for the intensity of the animosity between Harry and Draco. Since they are still young, their minibattle is innocent enough, including tickling and dancing charms.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

* Ron's attempt to use a telephone to call Harry at the Dursleys'. * Harry's first encounter with a Dementor on the train (and just about any other encounter with Dementors). Harry's brush with the Dementors is terrifying and prepares Potter fans for a darker, scarier book. * Harry, Ron, and Hermione's behaviour in Professor Trelawney's Divination class. Some of the best moments in Rowling's books occur when she reminds us that the wizards-in-training at Hogwarts are, after all, just children. Clearly, even at a school of witchcraft and wizardry, classes can be boring and seem pointless to children. * The Boggart lesson in Professor Lupin's classroom. * Harry, Ron, and Hermione's knock-down confrontation with Snape.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

* Hermione's disgust at the reception for the veela (Bulgarian National Team Mascots) at the Quidditch World Cup. Rowling's fourth book addresses issues about growing up--the dynamic between the boys and girls at Hogwarts starts to change. Nowhere is this more plain than the hilarious scene in which magical cheerleaders nearly convince Harry and Ron to jump from the stands to impress them. * Viktor Krum's crush on Hermione--and Ron's objection to it. * Malfoy's "Potter Stinks" badge. * Hermione's creation of S.P.E.W., the intolerant bigotry of the Death Eaters, and the danger of the Triwizard Tournament. Add in the changing dynamics between girls and boys at Hogwarts, and suddenly Rowling's fourth book has a weight and seriousness not as present in early books in the series. Candy and tickle spells are left behind as the students tackle darker, more serious issues and take on larger responsibilities, including the knowledge of illegal curses.

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

* Harry's outburst to his friends at No. 12 Grimmauld Place. A combination of frustration over being kept in the dark and fear that he will be expelled fuels much of Harry's anger, and it all comes out at once, directly aimed at Ron and Hermione. Rowling perfectly portrays Harry's frustration at being too old to shirk responsibility, but too young to be accepted as part of the fight that he knows is coming. * Harry's detention with Professor Umbridge. Rowling shows her darker side, leading readers to believe that Hogwarts is no longer a safe haven for young wizards. Dolores represents a bureaucratic tyrant capable of real evil, and Harry is forced to endure their private battle of wills alone. * Harry and Cho's painfully awkward interactions. Rowling clearly remembers what it was like to be a teenager. * Harry's Occlumency lessons with Snape. * Dumbledore's confession to Harry.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

* This book is much darker than the rest. Lord Voldemort has been creating chaos in the Wizard and Muggle communities alike, the war is in full swing and the Wizarding community now lives in fear. * It is much more emotional. The story turns at the whim of a temperamental teenager from war and life-changing tragedy, to euphoria and glistening happiness.

Magic, Mystery, and Mayhem: A Conversation with J.K. Rowling

"I am an extraordinarily lucky person, doing what I love best in the world. I'm sure that I will always be a writer. It was wonderful enough just to be published. The greatest reward is the enthusiasm of the readers." --J.K. Rowling

Find out more about Harry's creator in our exclusive interview with J.K. Rowling.

Did You Know?

The Little White Horse was J.K. Rowling's favourite book as a child.

Jane Austen is Rowling's favourite author.

Roddy Doyle is Rowling's favourite living writer.

View other editions of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
View books by J.K. Rowling.

19 Years Later - Rated
A quite fantastic end to the most enchanting literary masterpeice of our generation. I hope that in 19 years and even in nineteen hundred years this series of books will be appreciated for what it is.

Nothing short of perfection!

A magical ending to a magical series. - Rated
Throughout the months spent reading the complete series of Harry Potter books, chapter by chapter, I gradually noticed that Rowling was building up the characterisations, the plot and indeed the reader for an immense conclusion to an epic feat of fantasy fiction. The way in which the characters, especially Potter himself, are developed, is one example to suggest that each of the facets of the plot are being primed for a powerful and moving ending. The plot itself is illuminated in a way that few modern writers can execute - it is underlined, considered in some depth, and then shadowed by a number of sub-plots that are each of great significance to the concluding tour de force. This novel proves that a multiplicty of emotions, plots and characters can come together to bring a sense of finality to the reader, and that Harry Potter is not just another character in a series of mass market books, but a legend of fiction who will remain alive in the imaginations of many readers, of all ages, for many years to come.

Did we really expect otherwise? - Rated
Well, what can be said that hasn't already been exuberantly declared in dozens of other reviews? Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows does indeed live up to the monumental hype piled upon it, and ends Harry's epic adventure as neatly as could be hoped.

Once again, JK Rowling advances a level in her writing, which is now on par with other great authors, whilst still holding onto the magic that made the first novels such a joy to read. She ties together all the loose ends, has the obligatory final battle (which is done with both panache and an impressive amount of sombriety), and chucks in dozens of clever references and throwbacks to the other books while she's at it.

I, like many others, felt that the middle section of the book dragged a little. But that's not to say it was boring; it simply couldn't reach the level of excitement and zippy narrative that the rest of the book achieved so effortlessly. But there is emotion there, and a lot of soul-searching, which of course serves an important purpose.

The Deathly Hallows is full of love and loss, good and evil, humour and a previously absent feeling of menace. It achieves, like all the other Harry Potter books, the status of being 'unputdownable', but also contains a maturity and grace of writing which heralds Rowlings final ascent to the throne of literary achievement.

Fantastic.

Why??? A Disappointment to those who have lived for these books. - Rated
To be honest, it would have been difficult to complete such an epic series without letting people down. However, Rowling could have at least given the characters who have made her rich and famous respect. As a worshipper of the Harry Potter series, I feel cheated and although I should have felt elated at the fact that good DID triumph over evil and the antagonist was finally vanquished, instead I just felt.... nothing. I felt empty, as if there was something missing from the legend of the books, and after nearly a decade of waiting for the finale, from myself.
As other reviewers have pointed out, there are huge inaccuracies in the book, but personally I think that the greatest injustice was the death of Severus Snape.
He was quite simply, as JK Rowling herself had said, a gift of a character, and the greatest fictional persona I have ever come across. Dark and brooding throughout with a blackened past and bleak existence, he was intelligent and courageous and kept millions of readers guessing about his loyalties throughout, arguably one of the only storlines that kept the suspense alive. I was rooting for him to be good for the duration of the series and was let down by the fact that his apparent sole reason for not being evil echoed about 10 million fan fictions on the web. And the two second death scene?? Snape was as, if not more important than Albus Dumbledore to the plot, and quite simply put, he deserved more.
I will continue to love the Harry Potter books but after 6 brilliant novels I fail to see why the seventh and ultimate book would be so abysmal. Lupin, Tonks, Mad Eye and Fred also do not recieve the emotion and reverence they were due in their deaths, and Harry Potter himself, the namesake and heart of the saga, became hollow, pompous, emotionless --in a word, unlikable.

I had to read it just to know...but given a second chance I think I would have let my own imagination do the work. Could have been so much better.
(P.S. some people criticise adults for harsh reviews for a "childrens" book, so for the record I am sixteen.)

Overall..okay, but disappointingly predictable - Rated
I think very much that my title says it all...it was an okay narrative, quite exciting and chilling in places, but, in the end, with Harry defeating Voldemort, I felt like I had wasted my time reading all of the books....nothing exciting happened, just a predictable "good beats evil" cliche.