“I've been with Harry Potter since the beginning, eagerly awaiting each new book in the series (and for the last two books, lining up at midnight to get a copy). When I finally got my hands on this last book, I had mixed emotions. I was excited to see what happened next. Indeed, I NEEDED to see what happened in the end. Yet I couldn't shake a certain degree of sorrow that it was finally coming to a close, and even fear that the ending might not live up to the expectations set in my mind by the first six books.
Well, those negative emotions didn't get to me. I cracked it open and read as fast as I could. Quickly, my concerns about it being the final chapter in the tale of Harry Potter faded, as I was pulled back into Rowling's wonderful world of magic.
Of course, it reads much like the other Potter books. Suitable for children (though considerably darker than the previous books), yet enjoyable for adults as well. This makes it a very quick, fairly easy read. I like that. The reading experience was smooth, as it should be.
As far as the plot's concerned, I was, on the whole, pleased. I felt like certain elements deserved more attention. I felt like the deaths of some fairly major characters deserved more time than they received. While they weren't severely under written, I think the book would have carried more emotional weight had more attention been paid.
Parts of the ending began to slip into place early on in the book. As I came upon the last pages, I found many of my suspicions confirmed. At the same, I couldn't predict everything, and a few key elements did take me by surprise. It's obvious that Rowling put a lot of work into the planning of the series, because now, knowing the full story, I can see the foreshadowing and hints from previous books.
The ending was, I think, the only one that could possibly have worked. I've heard several complaints about the epilogue, but personally, I'm glad to have it. Though it serves little purpose to the plot itself, I'm very happy to know how everything worked out after the story was completed and the danger was over. Had the book stopped abruptly after the climax, I would have felt disappointed that such questions were left unanswered.
On the whole, I loved it. I found it to be a wonderful end to a wonderful series and despite a few minor flaws, I give it a five out of five!”
