From Deseret News archives:

'Hallows' is fitting finale to the Harry Potter saga

Published: Saturday, July 21, 2007 12:15 a.m. MDT
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 
Clearly, since this is the last chapter, J.K. Rowling decided to go all out.

It may not be the longest book in the series, but "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" definitely packs the most punch. The drama starts on the first page and continues practically throughout the entire story.

With Book 7, Rowling brings her phenomenally successful series about the young wizard to a close. And what a close it is.

There were some complaints that Book 6 — "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" — didn't have a lot of action until the end, that its role seemed to be filling in important bits of back story and setting the stage for the final installment.

There will be no such complaints here. The pace picks up from the start, with readers thrown into a world that's much darker than any of the previous Potter books. Harry and friends Ron and Hermione are on a quest some weeks after the death of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, and it's time to put aside familiar faces and places and get on their way.

Story continues below
Lord Voldemort, Harry's nemesis, seems to be everywhere, his tentacles of power reaching into every corner. It's a dangerous world they must travel, and no place or happy occasion is safe. Their journey takes them to some unexpected locations and makes them interact with a whole host of characters, including some who were merely references in other books and some who are painfully familiar faces.

Old antagonists from previous books show up — one of whom enters into a positive relationship with Harry, and another who continues to wallow in all the traits that inspired Harry's hatred.

Harry, Ron and Hermione are on the search for horcruxes, vessels that Voldemort created to hold pieces of his soul, which make it impossible to kill him as long as they exist. The search has them moving over various parts of the United Kingdom as they try to fit all the pieces together. Many secrets are finally revealed, all leading up to the ultimate confrontation between Harry and the wizard who tried to kill him so long ago.

Rowling captured many hearts with her first book, and her last is guaranteed to keep them. She is amazingly gifted, demonstrated not only by the incredibly detailed world she has created, but by the depth of feeling and complexity she writes into her characters.

It's all here: humor, courage, redemption, sadness, terror, human frailty — sometimes all in the same character. There are sections that will make readers laugh out loud, as well as scenes of such sadness that tears are inevitable.

Recent comments

I love the Harry Potter series!!! J.K. Rowling is so extremely...

Alle | Oct. 24, 2007 at 10:47 a.m.

previousnext

Latest comments

The pot calling the kettle black hey?. As if (before he quit using drug's),...

Jazz fall apart late at L.A.

Sorry if this is a repeat, it wasn't clear if it took my comments last time....

Knights 'D' powers past Vikes

Wow. What a bold prediction. It would be the first win for Lehi in what, 5-6...

just a quick clarification to my post above...the 5 conferences to not each...

Jazz fall apart late at L.A.

Did you watch the game? lots of our players were throwing up " a wing and a...

Leave the nudists alone! Why does the government think they have to (and...

So, the story is FINALLY going to be told??? I think there may be some...

Re: to RE Michigan WHo: Ha ha, wow, you obviously didn't read the first...

It's interesting to me to see that even in articles that are critical of the...

'Just because this article stated that the school curriculum adopted in May...

Advertisements