Harry Potter Spoiler

[indiegirl]

Go ahead and dish away about book five---no holds barred!

Don't read if you don't want to know what happens!

[kama'aina mama]

Good gracious woman! What did you do? Put your family in suspended animation for 24 hours? I am quite proud of hitting Chapter 15!

I will post some predictions from this vantage point:
Delores will be revealed to be less than human. (the whole self hatred trip, methinks) Hate her! Hate her like poison!!!!
Sirius is gonna do something fabulously dangerous and possibly pay a high price for it.
What the H-E double hockey sticks are the elves doing with all those "hats"?
And what about the reptile/horse thingies... weird... Maybe Harry picked up some power of sight that he hadn't had from Voldie in the last contact.

I like how the dynamic is developing between the three friends. Disagreement but loyalty. Each developing an actual personality as opposed to the two simply being a small function in the ones life, ya know? Also love how the senior Weasleys are fleshing out as well. (Poor Molly with the bogart! :cry)

I am broken hearted about Percy and I am certain I don't know the worst of it yet. Fudge is scaring me. I fear he will be a DeathEater soon. I also keep thinking of that phrase that 'the best trick the Devil ever did was to convince people he didn't exist'.

I am still quite angry at the widespread spoiler that someone will die and don't yet know who.

'scuse me. Gotta go read.

[Elphaba]

sirius black is killed in battle by a death-eater.
lucius malfoy and the death-eaters who escaped from azkaban are caught by dumbledore and other OOP members and sent to azkaban.
hagrid finds his half brother, a full giant, and brings him to live in the forest.
harry gets over cho, and ginny is becoming quite the social butterfly.

[faeriemom]

I finished the book last night. I am soooooo upset about Sirius. He was my very favorite character. I would rather it had been just about anyone else who dies. Not him!

Ok, I can't really discuss Sirius right now because I'm really upset! (I know, I know, they're not real. It's just a book. But they're real to me!!)

One thing I found interesting was the bit about how the prophesied one could have been either Harry or Neville.....I think that's something that will develop further in the next book. It's interesting to think that maybe Neville was the actual "chosen" one, but because Voldemort jumped the gun without hearing the whole prophecy, he made Harry the one. It set in motion a chain of events that changed harry's life. I love the idea that there is destiny, but that our actions influence (or even change) that destiny.

Also, loved Ginny in this one! And the D.A.! And how Neville is developing... again, ties in with the prophecy somehow I think.

My other favorite characters (besides Sirius) are Fred and George. So I'm thrilled with how they left school and that they've finally been able to open their joke shop. I want more of them in the next book! They rock.

Finally, I thought it was cool (though disturbing) that Hermione would lure Umbridge into the Forbidden forrest, knowing that the Centaurs would probably kill her. That was so premeditated and ruthless. Interesting character development.

That's all I can say right now! It's still too fresh. I need time to decompress!! I finished the book in a total of 15 hours -- now I need to let it sit in my head for awhile.

faeriemom

P.S. If only harry had remembered the mirror Sirius had given him........

[Elphaba]

faeriemom, i KNOW what you mean about the mirror. i keep thinking, dumbass, why didn't you open that package straight away and then there wouldn't have been any of the floo problems and that bastard kreacher wouldn't have been able to lie to harry. sob. i loved sirius, too. he was my absolute favorite, and prisoner of azkaban is still my favorite book, though this one was sooooooo good.
umbridge deserved to die. evil wench with that quill from hell, and going to use the cruciatus curse on harry. i laughed out loud when ron made the horse noise and she freaked out. that and the comments in the beginning about wizards blasting their buttocks off when they keep their wands in their back pockets had me rolling.
i think it was awesome how neville started kicking butt in defensive moves. he is going to avenge his parents' torture for sure.

[indiegirl]

Ok, I need to admit that I have not read the fifth book, but wanted to start a spoiler for my own selfish reasons! LOL. Spoil away!

[JessicaS]

[SPOILER]
I am really upset about Sirius as well. He is one of my favorite characters and one of the last I wanted to die. Some jerkwad told me ahead of time that he died. They suck butt.[/SPOILER

Warning :: Spoiler Ahead! Highlight to read message!

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I really thought the bits with Snape were interesting. Why isn't he eating with everyone? How long has that been going on? I thought he previously ate at the High Table but in this book he isn't mentioned as even there. What is up with that?? That Occlumancy thing was pretty interesting.

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Loved Fred and George. They are even funnier than they were in the last book.

Warning :: Spoiler Ahead! Highlight to read message!

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What *is* up with Hermoine in this book? She has relaxed A LOT. She participates in the mayhem and pranking, removes mbridge ruthlessly. I think that ruthlessness might show up again later.

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[Chanley]

Very interesting theory about Neville and Harry and the prophesy. Hmmm...Dumbledore seems SURE that Harry is the one tho. I pondered that for a second tho too. hmm....


Hermione relaxing, look at Minerva!! Even she got in on the attitude adjustment. Desparate times call for desparate measures.

I just felt such a deep sense of compassion for Severus tho. I really wish that Harry could somehow get over his own feelings and bridge the gap. It is so easy to see the pain in Severus.

[faeriemom]

Maybe Snape isn't eating with everyone else because he's supposed to pretend he's only at Hogwarts as an agent of Voldemort. He doesn't want to appear too friendly with Dumbledore and the rest.

I found Snape really interesting in this book too. I loved seeing bits of his childhood....and wow, that scene from beside the lake. A bored Sirius, an egocentric James Potter, and poor Severus. I felt so bad for him -- that he was picked on like that. It explains a lot!! I think I'd have it in for Harry too if he reminded me of someone who'd bullied me so horribly.

I think it's great that Rowling finally showed Harry's dad as a "real" person though. I was tired of perfect James and Lily. It's nice to see a bit more of their personalities....but that's part of why I'm so upset that Sirius is gone. He was Harry's strongest connection to his parents. His connection to what his folks were like when they were his age. I guess he's still got Lupin for that. But it's not the same.

I just keep thinking of how Sirius gave Harry his Firebolt. How he turned into Snuffles so he could come watch Harry play Quidditch. How he became Snuffles so he could run along side the Hogwarts Express as Harry left for school. How happy he was to have Harry and the Weasley's with him at Christmas. How he wanted Harry to come live with him. He really loved Harry. Man, I'm tearing up just thinking about all this!

I am holding out hope that he will somehow be back in Book 6 or 7. After all, when he died he fell through the archway and disappeared. Where did he go? What is the archway? What were the voices Harry heard? Is Sirius one of the voices now? I don't know if I missed something regarding this, but it seems kind of open-ended to me. I'm going to keep my fingers crossed.

So, now that Sirius is gone who does the house belong to? Who is Kreacher's master now? Belatrix (isn't that the evil cousin that killed Sirius?), Draco's mom (Sirius' other cousin)? Or did Sirius will the place to the Order, or to Harry? I wonder how that will turn out?

Now that I've done my day of immersion reading, I'm going to go back and read it again, taking my time this time to see what else I get out of it.

faeriemom

P.S. The occlumancy stuff was good. At times I really couldn't tell if Snape WAS trying to help Harry close his mind, or if he was opening him up for Voldemort. I thought it was all very wel written.

[faeriemom]

Chanley -- I agree that Harry is the "one" now. But I think the point was that there is the possiblity that it wasn't MEANT to be Harry at all, it was meant to be Neville. But because Voldemort acted without hearing the whole prophecy, and attacked the baby Harry, it kindof forced the issue because suddenly Harry was marked as his equal and the second part of the prophecy was fulfilled. If Voldemort had waited a few years, like Harry said, to discover which of those boys was the prophesied one he may have found that it wasn't Harry. And Harry's (and Neville's) lives would have been much different.

I guess I just like the idea that fate may have chosen Neville Longbottom as Voldemort's foil, but Voldemort's reckless actions altered that destiny, and created a new reality.

I also think that all of that is in the story for a reason. I think it's going to be important in the next two books. Especially now that Neville is braver and more confident (and able to throw some pretty mean jinxes). He's a wild card. I can't wait to see how it plays out.

[mamapixie]

Grrr...Rowling had BETTER of started year 6 already, I can NOT wait another 3 years for the next book! Just finished it about an hour ago, and my only thought was "NOOO!! Not again, not Harry."

I was ready to "avada kedavra" Percy myself, little jerk, he'll get his just rewards.

The Neville/Harry thing will be very interesting to read about in the next two books, I think we're in for a surprise!

You know, I kinda feel sorry for Snape, and I understand him MUCH better than before. He's not just some big ol' meany to me anymore.

[somemama]

T Does the depiction of the house-elves bother anyone else?

It seems to me rather racist.....for lack of a better word. They seem more like slaves than servants, and it seems to me that their language (syntax) is supposed to be depicting slaves.

[Chanley]

The house elves dont bother me.

Did anyone else notice there was no Halloween party???

I was sooo disappointed, I just wanted to say "HELLO!!! YOU FORGOT SOMETHING!"

BTW I love hermione, she really is something. Reminds me alot of my Mother in Law.

[Chanley]

Ohh and did the Ministry seem to echo current politcal crap currently?

I had the same feelings towards the ministry that I currently have towards our government. which I am sure is similar to the British govt under blair.

Ohh and I LOVED how everyone came together for the DA.

I am so happy Draco was taken down a few notches when his daddy went to prison. I would have such a hard time if I were Harry not chiding him about his jailbird daddy.

Can anyone else see Lilly Potter in Harry? This book really touched on the parents personalities and you can see how harry is like both.

[Hilary Briss]

The word on the street is that Hermione gets offed in chapter 2 of year six... I won't say by whom, but you'll be quite surprised.

[heartmama]

I had been told someone would die in book 5, and had heard it was Hermione, and then started to think it would be Hagrid (he WAS getting really depressed). I was so riveted to the story, terrified it was one them, I didn't really have as strong a reaction to Sirius dying. It was very sad, but more tragic than a "cry your eyes out" kind of reaction for me.

Weak plot points:

I personally forgot Sirius gave Harry something to use for communication, and I also forgot that Harry could have gone to Snape when he saw Sirius in his dream, knowing he was in the Order. So I couldn't blame Harry's character for forgetting. But IRL, if someone had given me something to commmunicate with, I think I would have remember that if I needed to contact them.

Also, Umbridge (Who was truly despicable), at one point tells Harry he has detention for giving the interview. Then it's never mentioned that he goes to it.

I hoped Harry would show some forgiveness to Snape after he looked in the Pensive. I actually think *Snape*, not Lupin, is the better possible connection for Harry to his past. You know the saying, you can hate as much as you love. I think Snape, under the right storyline, could be a very meaningful father figure for Harry now that he has lost Sirius.

I felt bad for Snape. I could not see Harry and Ron ever treating Malfoy the way James and Sirius treated Snape. It was pretty awful.

And what was that thing behind the curtain? They never said. A portal to instant death??

I also really hoped to see more with Petunia, but nothing happened after the Howler.

I thought Luna whats-her-name was a very interesting character.

And my only vent, it is SO ABSURD that Ron and Hermione go to boarding school and yet rarely go home for holidays either! Hermione spent the summer with the Weasleys (WHY??) and then skips on the skiiing trip with her parents during winter break to go back to school early. And Ron nearly always stays over at Hogwarts during winter/spring holidays too.

So the Weasleys see their kids like, six week a year. And Hermione see's her's like 3 days a year?????????That is good parenting? They always portray Mrs. Weasley as this harried housewife, but honestly, she doesn't see her kids like 10 and half months out of the year. You'd think she'd feel silly complaining about how exasperating they were during the brief time she's with them. Geez :

[faeriemom]

I would have rather had Hagrid killed off than Sirius. Not because I don't like Hagrid (I do), but because I think she's done as much with this character as she can (though she may surprise me yet). In my opinion, Sirius was a much more complicated and interesting character, especially after finding out that he came from a family of dark wizards.

I don't know if the things you mentioned were actually "weak" plot points.

I was always conscious of the fact that Harry could go to Snape about the dreams especially since they'd been working on the occlumancy togehter. But knew that he probably wouldn't think of that since he and Snape are not exactly friends, you know? And I never forgot that Sirius had given Harry a way to communicate with him, but that Harry had put it aside and never thought of it again. I think Rowling did a good job of mentioning it once, having Harry swear to himself not to use it (because he didn't want Sirius to risk getting caught), and then forget about it himself. I think her intention was that readers wouldn't remember that in the midst of all the excitement.

There wasn't any need for Rowling to recount Harry's subsequent detention with Umbridge after the interview. It had already been established what happens in detention, so the fact that she gave him detention again was really all that needed to be said.

After looking into the pensieve, I think Harry was more concerned about the new revelations about his father than he was about Snape's feelings. I'm not saying that Harry won't feel some sympathy for Snape (and let it shape how he tries to interact with him), just at that moment it wasn't his primary concern. I don't see how Snape could ever offer real insight into Harry's parents and their past. Snape views Lily and James through a very narrow lens. He couldn't be objective and honest about James at all, because to him James was just a horrible bully. But Lupin, on the other hand, knew James' faults as well as his good side. Maybe even more objectively than Sirius did.

Yeah, the archway....the curtain.....no one ever explained it, so I'm holding out hope that since that's where Sirius went, he may be able to come back someday (somehow). I bet we'll learn more about this in book 6.

I don't know if there's much more to learn about Petunia. I was hoping something dramatic would be uncovered, but Dumbledore explained it that by taking Harry in that first night, she had agreed to protect him. And that the fact that she and Harry both shared Lily's blood kept that protective spell going as long as he was at Privet Drive. Maybe there will be more about it in the next book, but I'm not sure. I think Petunia's part in all of this was pretty much explained in this one. (Though it would be a nice surprise if there's more to her after all....)

Finally, about the holidays. Hermione and Ron don't always stay at Hogwarts during holidays. Sometimes one or both of them will choose to stay with Harry if they're all doing research on whatever mystery they're trying to solve (like in books 1 and 2). But I recall both Ron and Hermione going home every summer in the previous books, Hermione going home at Christmas in some of the other books, Ron going home for Christmas (in book one -- can't remember the others), etc.... In book four they all stayed because of the Triwizard Tournament, right? And Ron's family came to Hogwarts to visit.

And in book 5, Hermione spent the summer with the Weasleys because of everything that's going on! Voldemort's back, the Order of the Phoenix is up and running again and there's a lot to be done. It's unlikely she would want to sit at home while the world (and especially her friends) are in danger. Same thing with going skiing. There was more important work to be done. She wouldn't just walk away from that for vacation. As for her parents, who knows what they think about it all. But I think they've raised Hermione to be independent and make her own decisions, which she does.

As for Mrs. Weasley, she may not be with them every day but she's still a mom (with 7 kids to worry about!). Even if they're away at school I think she's till involved in their lives (and certainly concerned about them). She's had to deal with Fred and George getting into all kinds of trouble, Ron nearly being killed a couple of times, Percy turning his back on the family, Ginny being taken over and nearly killed by Tom Riddle, and more. Plus now we know she works for the Order of the Phoenix, so it's not like she's sitting home eating bon-bons all day, complaining about her kids.

Any other thoughts on any of this? I'm sooo thrilled to have people to discuss the book with.

p.s. heartmama -- I've read back over this post to make sure it didn't come across as rude or anything. I can't tell if it does, so I just want to say that, while I'm disagreeing with some of what you said, I mean no disrespect. And I realize that what I post is simply my take on the book -- not absolute truth! I don't want there to be any hard feelings on this thread if people don't see eye to eye on what they've read!

[Gemini]

edited due to me reading the top finally...

I ranted about I thought this was about the Barnes and Noble spoiler just went to the last post and now know how dies...

My fault...

[crunchywannabe]

Actually, I think it IS Harry and was never meant to be Neville in the prophecy.

Voldemort only heard the first of the prophecy, that the boy would be born....etc etc

He did not hear the part that said there would be a transfer of powers and the boy would be marked.

When Voldemort attacked Harry as a baby, he was out to kill him. He was not trying to mark him with a scar. That scar and the power transfer only happened BECAUSE Harry was the one in the prophecy. Otherwise, he would have died from the curse.

Yeah, the archway....the curtain.....no one ever explained it, so I'm holding out hope that since that's where Sirius went, he may be able to come back someday (somehow). I bet we'll learn more about this in book 6.

I agree! Especially when Luna made the comment that he would be seen again.

I hated that Harry lost Sirius...his Godfather! Does he have to have so much sorrow in his life? And who will now be able to really tell him about his parents? I guess their is Lupin still, and I would love to see more of him.

[crunchywannabe]

Originally posted by heartmama
I personally forgot Sirius gave Harry something to use for communication, and I also forgot that Harry could have gone to Snape when he saw Sirius in his dream, knowing he was in the Order. So I couldn't blame Harry's character for forgetting. But IRL, if someone had given me something to commmunicate with, I think I would have remember that if I needed to contact them.

And my only vent, it is SO ABSURD that Ron and Hermione go to boarding school and yet rarely go home for holidays either! Hermione spent the summer with the Weasleys (WHY??) and then skips on the skiiing trip with her parents during winter break to go back to school early. And Ron nearly always stays over at Hogwarts during winter/spring holidays too.

I think Harry forgot to use it because when Sirius gave it to him, he never looked at it and put it out of his mind because he did not want to put Sirius in any more danger by using it. (with everything being monitored that is)

Hemoine spent the summer with the Weasley's this year for safety....because of what was going on with Voldemorts reappearance.

I could not believe that it was Prof Umbridge that sent the dementors after Harry in the beginning!