The journey is over! I have completed my first reread of the Harry Potter series in a decade. And it was every bit as magical as I hoped it would be. You know when you reread an old favourite after a really long time and it doesn’t hold up to the memory you have? Thank goodness that didn’t happen here.
If you’ve missed my reaction posts to the first six books, you can find them here:-
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Philosopher’s Stone
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Goblet of Fire
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Order of the Phoenix
Harry Potter 10 Years On: The Half-Blood Prince
And now it’s time to take a look at my reactions to rereading this final book!
Initial Thoughts…
It’s nearly over 😦
I know they add to the story but I can’t help getting a bit bored by the newspaper articles at the start – I just want to get back to the action!
Actually crying already.
I can’t cope, this book is brutal.
Hermione is bloody brilliant.
The trio sassing the minister is hilarious.
Every family has an Auntie Muriel.
I love the magical wedding! Such a nice scene.
Harry reading his mum’s letter hits me way too hard in the feels.
The argument between Harry and Remus never fails to make me uncomfortable.
The change in Kreacher is too cute.
This book is STRESSFUL.
Ron’s attitude is so upsetting.
Chapter 16, oh my heart.
Bathilda freaks me out!
I love the Tale of the Three Brothers. It’s such a great addition to the story.
The radio show is very cool too.
The whole chapter at Malfoy Manor destroys me.
BRB, crying again.
Reading about Gringotts makes me so excited for the studio tour!!
Neville’s gran, what a badass.
Ghostly backstory, yasss.
Shit is going DOWN.
No no no no no no
“Not my daughter, you bitch!”
Thoughts Upon Finishing…
Honestly, I’m not surprised they had to make two movies out of this book because SO much happens. I feel breathless even typing out those reactions. This book is an exhilarating ride from start to finish (apart from those newspaper articles!)
I was worried that some of the emotion would have been lost in the ten years since I last read this book. But I needn’t have feared. I cried at least 3 times rereading this. The losses were still just as painful and the emotions still so raw, even with knowing what the outcomes would be. This was one of the first ‘proper’ books I read where significant characters were killed off and, to this day, it feels like those of us who grew up with Harry, Ron and Hermione lost real friends in the Battle of Hogwarts.
Seriously, this story still blows my mind all these years later. The way Rowling ties everything together, the big reveal after all the clues she has been dropping for the last six books – it’s truly masterful. Yes, some of the magic is being steadily worn away these days as she goes back and tries to add in extra things but let’s ignore that, shall we? Taking the original seven-book series as a separate entity, I can honestly say that Harry Potter is a masterpiece and deserves to become ‘classic’ literature in the years to come. So many people have had their lives shaped by this story, myself included. I have no doubt that if I were to reread these books in another ten years, I would still find them just as magical.
Well, I hope you’ve all enjoyed reading my posts detailing my Harry Potter reread! I’ve had such fun putting them together. And now I’m so excited to be heading over to Watford on Monday for the studio tour!! I will post about my trip when I get back and share some pictures! x
This might be my favourite HP book. It was definitely the one I was most hyped about! The cover release was so exciting. What do you think about the story being split into 2 films?
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At the time of release, I wasn’t too happy about the split but, as I said in my review, I can now understand why it was necessary because so much happens in the final book! I’m glad they gave it the screen-time it deserved 🙂
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Same here – it might have felt too rushed otherwise.
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I still think that this book could have been edited quite a bit to make it tighter and a better book, but it was a very nice conclusion to the series. (To be fair, I think the last 3 or 4 books all needed better editing to make them tighter.) I wonder, though, how I would have felt if I had grown up with the books. I probably wouldn’t have noticed the same things reading them for the first time as a teen that I did reading them as an adult. I mean, I still devoured the last few books within a day or two of their release date. But I always related more to Ron’s oldest brothers (Bill and Charlie) and to the younger teachers than I did with the students.
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Yes, I always wonder if I would praise them so highly if I first read them as an adult. I know they’re not perfect but they just represent such a large part of my childhood, growing up at the same rate as Harry and co. I can’t help but adore them!
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Yeah, I love the books, but I always felt more like Harry & co were younger cousins or something, so I didn’t relate to them as much. Oh well, I do find it fascinating to see how our age when we read them impacts what we take away from the books!
In related news, I just loaned my copy of Sorcerer’s Stone to a co-worker who hasn’t read them, and I’m jealous that she gets to read it for the first time. It was so magical that first time. (Still magical on re-reads, but not like that first read.)
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Oh I’m jealous of her too! She has such a magical journey ahead of her!
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❤
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This is such a wonderful review, Alex! I’m glad that the experience was still so powerful for you, years after reading it the first time. The Deathly Hallows truly is a masterpiece that ties together the series so well! I will never get over how emotional and beautiful this conclusion to the series is! ❤
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