Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
December 25th 2006 08:01
The biggest flaw in The Half-Blood Prince is that Lord Voldemort doesn't even make an appearance once. Obviously, Rowling has to stagger the confrontation between Harry Potter and Voldemort over three novels and postpone it till the last novel but to totally blank out the villain like that is a real loophole. Many people found the book perfunctory and unsatisfying. When i first read it, I din't like it that much and this is one book that hasn't improved on me even after three readings. The problem is that this novel does not advance the plot in anyway except give us necessary but background information and prepare the way for the climactic showdown in the last book. Dumbledore is killed because well, the hero has to be finally do the thing on his own.
I cannot detail the plot line here because there is none. Harry is in her sixth year and he is having private lessons with Dumbledore where the professor is filling him with as much of Voldemort as he knows. Harry is supicious that his long time rival at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy is on to something dangerous but his friends are not interested. Finally, Harry has found an old potions book belonging to one Half-Blood Prince which makes Harry suddenly the best student in Hogwarts.
Now, this last plot line is definitely reminiscent of Ginny Weasley's diary in Chamber of Secrets and Rowling has said that much of the plot in this book should have been originally used in book two. And it does seem a bit late for Harry to have a book to confide in at this stage in his life. Not to mention the fact that the stuff the book teaches him is pretty lame. Even when we find who half-blood prince really is, it just means that someone has had a certain nickname at certain point of life.
Most of the book is filled with the dullest romances I've read and quidditch is not half as interesting as before. But, the biggest disappointment is that the most characters are shrill, humourless and distracted and that includes Ron, Ginny and Hermione. This last deserves to be expunged from the pages as she has become the dullest marm in literature. All in all, a disappointment.
I cannot detail the plot line here because there is none. Harry is in her sixth year and he is having private lessons with Dumbledore where the professor is filling him with as much of Voldemort as he knows. Harry is supicious that his long time rival at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy is on to something dangerous but his friends are not interested. Finally, Harry has found an old potions book belonging to one Half-Blood Prince which makes Harry suddenly the best student in Hogwarts.
Now, this last plot line is definitely reminiscent of Ginny Weasley's diary in Chamber of Secrets and Rowling has said that much of the plot in this book should have been originally used in book two. And it does seem a bit late for Harry to have a book to confide in at this stage in his life. Not to mention the fact that the stuff the book teaches him is pretty lame. Even when we find who half-blood prince really is, it just means that someone has had a certain nickname at certain point of life.
Most of the book is filled with the dullest romances I've read and quidditch is not half as interesting as before. But, the biggest disappointment is that the most characters are shrill, humourless and distracted and that includes Ron, Ginny and Hermione. This last deserves to be expunged from the pages as she has become the dullest marm in literature. All in all, a disappointment.
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