Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Progression
Review: This book is truly marvelous; engaging and well thought-out storylines draw the reader in. I was impressed with how Rowling built on the characters' previous experiences and enriched their personalities even more. This was the true definition of a "page-turner," and kept me reading well into the nights--lack of sleep is a peril for Rowling fans! Keep in mind that this book IS fantasy and IS NOT reality, and you will enjoy a wonderful escape into the magical world. A well-crafted and thoroughly satisfying read. Can't wait for the next installment!
Rating:
Summary: The Best Harry Potter Book By Far!!!
Review: This is by far J.K. Rowling's best work. The building suspense and changes in Harry's life just make you want to keep reading it. The Ministry of Magic plays an evil role in this novel and tries to take over Hogwarts, but apart from that, Harry is very moody. He even kisses a girl! The climax is thrilling with a tragic and unexpected death that hits Harry hard. A thriling secret is revealed about Harry's connection with Voldemort and the usual gang returns to take part in this fantastic piece of writing.
Rating: 
Summary: A step down from the first four
Review: I have to admit that I was surprised at the outpouring of favorable reviews from critics for this fifth book in the Harry Potter series. Let me first say that I'm a big fan of the series and have appreciated the high caliber of writing as well as JK Rowling's ability to stimulate our children's intellect. Every member of our family is a huge fan and we happily waited until midnight to purchase three copies of the latest book (we can't wait for each other to finish). However, when my wife, my 14 year-old daughter, and I had finished with the book we all had similar feelings about it. My primary disappointment was that while I actually looked forward to 870 pages of Harry Potter, I felt that the book could have gotten rid of half of those pages and not lost any important part of the story line. In fact, it would have helped to keep the pace going. Too often the reader is led through some sub-plot that, in the end, had no bearing at all on the story at hand. Even characters were introduced that you waited to have some role that never materialized. The second criticism would be a apparent discontinuity with the previous four books. In the first four books I felt JK Rowling did an excellent job in keeping the Harry Potter universe together and having pieces from Book Four meld in perfectly with the foundation established by the previous books. In this book, however, the entire universe seems to have changed in the month since Harry last left school. People who were regarded as saviors are now villified and institutions that were the keepers of the moral flame have been reduced to petty political infighting and backstabbing. I understand to some extent what the author was trying to accomplish but it was too much to swallow. There was so much change so quickly that it didn't make any sense. Without giving the story away ... I didn't believe the whole Percy sub-plot (if he's that petty and power-hungry, how did he end up in Gryffyndor instead of Slytherin? Did the Sorting Hat make a mistake?). I also didn't buy the Cornelius Fudge turnaround either ... again it was too much too soon with little basis for the bizarre change of heart. Likewise, the Ministry of Magic's campaign with the school was too far over the top. It got to be ridiculous. I was also disappointed in Harry's new "darker" persona. While people have written that it made him more complex and mature ... I felt the exact opposite. I thought he came off as a whining petulant child. He lashed out at both his peers and elders seemingly without justification. The constant "all caps" SCREAMING on every other page got old very quickly as well. Where was the Harry Potter from the first four books who marshalled his resources, never gave up, and looked for solutions where he could find them? I felt he took a major step back in this book. Even the "tragic death" we have all been waiting for was anti-climatic. It seemed to be forced ... as if JK Rowling said at the end of the book "Okay, someone needs to die ... who will it be?" I still enjoyed the book and give it three stars as it was an average read. It was just disappointing to get an "average" read from such an anticipated novel from such a great writer. However, I know I'll be waiting at midnight for Book Six when it comes out.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book !!
Review: I have read all of the Harry Potter books they are all great but this one has to be the best because it goes so much deeper into the story with many questions being finally answered.
However great the story is tragedy strikes Harry yet agian. I was dissapointed to see Harry lose someone close to him again.
As in the previous books the young people don't communicate their fears with the adults and vise versa so unfortunate events occur.
Just a lesson on how important it is to communicate with your kids and you kids with your parents.
It has been especially neat to watch the characters grow up and begin to exibit maturity, J.K. Rowling has done an excellent job with the characters. I look forward to seeing them mature even more in the last 2 books as they realize how their decisions impact the rest of their lives.
Happy Reading!
Rating:
Summary: Best Book Yet!
Review: I really do think this is the most marvelous installment in the Harry Potter series yet. You find out so much, it's exciting, it's dramatic, it's funny....it has every single thing a good plot needs. This book delves deeper into harry's psyche. He mulls over many details, and is prone to frequent outbursts. When he is not made prefect, he thinks about it, and almost condemns Ron (you'll find out why)and others. Harry is also plaugued by dreams that seem to connect him and voldemort. The dreams happen when the actual act is happening...he is transported into voldemort's body, he can hear his thoughts, and sees the action as it happens...he becomes a sort of alert. But this turns out badly for him in the end. The new DADA teacher is so awful, you want to jump in the book and strangle her. that goes for that dear old minister of magic, Cornelius Fudge, as well. Personally, I think some of the best parts in the book happen because of dumbledore. he gets harry out of a few jams, and I seriously was astounded by the brilliance of the plans he had. This book, in short, is fantastic.
Rating:
Summary: An wonderful chapter in the life of Harry
Review: As I completed another chapter in the life of Harry Potter, I felt closer not only to him, but to all the characters in this story. I was elated to see each of the characters take that next step into adulthood. They are growing up and showing the anger and frustation at sometimes being treated as children, rather than the grown-ups they are trying to become. J.K. Rowling captures the changes of youth wonderfully, I see my 15 year old nephew in Potter, the emotions Rowling writes for Potter are true to any teenager. Rowling is also hazing the sometimes black and white world of children, and showing that even heros are not perfect, for they are, afterall, human. While I missed the same amount of action as was in 'The Goblet of Fire', realize that this book covers the action that happens in ones self, not just on the battlefield.
Rating: 
Summary: A bit tedious, but worth it
Review: At the end of my first reading I was quite disappointed. It seemed like too many of the loose ends from the previous books were settled in an almost off-hand way, there were too many things that were there for no reason, there weren't enough clues for the next books, several characters develop down trajectories we are utterly unprepared for, Harry is angry the whole way through, there wasn't a surprise ending, the ending was anti-climatic and didn't include a tying-up of the clues that were sprinkled throughout the book, and I couldn't come up with any urgent plot purpose for the death that occurs.
But in the days since my first reading, and having re-read the most important bits, I've changed my mind on most of that. I've decided that many of those things that were there for no reason probably were clues for the next books, that it wasn't JK Rowling's fault that my best friend had guessed the "surprise" ending two books ago, and I've started to reconcile myself to the purposes of the ending and the death. 870 pages of teenage rage still makes for tedious reading, however much Harry has the right to feel that way, and the main way I can make the ending not be lame is to make it be poorly explained, but I suspect that all this is "the way it really happened."
I've also come to rather like the random character development. Too many of the characters have been rather flat, and it was on the whole nice to get the added complexity. I was particularly glad to see Neville coming into his own. For the first time, we get to see the adults in the series as real people. I especial liked the historical background on the Moony/Padfoot/Prongs/Snape dramas. I do hope Harry gets over some of his anger over the course of the summer, not only because I don't want to read about it again, but because, by the laws of fantasy books, he will have to master it or be ripe pickings for the dark side.
A few lingering frustrations... I'm still waiting to see how it is that people from wizard families manage to be so clueless about the muggle world. What to they do for elementary school? I imagine the Weasleys home-schooled, but what about the others? And where do they do their grocery shopping, that they don't know about muggle money? How and why did Snape change sides? What kind of family is James from?
All in all a romping good read, giving plenty for us to think about until she gets around to giving us the next installment.
Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: A long read, but very entertaining. I couldn't put the book down because I wanted to see what would happen next. I was somewhat disturbed by Harry's anger and immaturity, but his character is only 15 years old. This story is definitely darker with more complex issues for readers to grasp, but younger readers will still enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: No longer can you identify with the star of the story, as he irrationally turns on his friends for following his previously revered Dumbledore's advice, and acts irrationally throughout the rest of the story as well. The story is like a can of worms opened up all at once - a million story lines suddenly popping out at the same time, and most do not get wrapped up satisfactorily in the end, and detract from the main story line. The main story line is lame, making "you know who" go all out and sacrifice his best deatheaters for something of very little value to his cause. The ending is hurried, as though the author suddenly realized that 600 pages had passed and the book was nowhere near ending. Accordingly, it is a predictable, unimpressive, unchallenging ending without any logic or "wow" appeal. Good guy comes in, wraps it all up, people suddenly change their minds, all is right with the world again, all in a few pages at the end. Very unsatisfying. Throughout the book, all rules, restrictions and bets are off as to any set in previous books. All previous personalities have radical changes and after this fiasco, Hogwarts could never return to be the haven it once was. Ghost written?
Rating:
Summary: I couldn't put it down...
Review: A definite page-turner. Harry is darker and more complex in this novel than any other- Rowling digs deep! I won't give it away but I almost cried with disapointment at certain parts, but was thrilled when certain questions are answered at the end. Bring on book 6!
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