Originally Posted By smeeeko I trust Snape! ..and Rowling better NOT off him in Bk#7 either.. (not that Alan Rickman needs more HP work..but I really like him as Snape! He was good as Mesmer too..)
Originally Posted By jasmine7 And so it begins. I went past our Barnes and Noble about an hour ago on my way to get breakfast, and there were already about 20 people sitting outside, lined up for the release. Dang! I'm a die-hard Potter fan, but I'm not about to sit outside in 95 degree, 100+ heat-index weather for 17 hours. Yikes! Nope, I preordered from Amazon, and per the UPS tracking, it's already hit my city. I'd love it if I got it today, but I'm sure they won't deliver it until tomorrow.
Originally Posted By u k fan People will have been in line for over 50 hours by the time it's released in London!!!
Originally Posted By mickeymeg Just checking in to see any last minute predictions. I won't be back in here until I have finished reading =)
Originally Posted By ecdc >>And so it begins. I went past our Barnes and Noble about an hour ago on my way to get breakfast, and there were already about 20 people sitting outside, lined up for the release. Dang! I'm a die-hard Potter fan, but I'm not about to sit outside in 95 degree, 100+ heat-index weather for 17 hours. Yikes! Nope, I preordered from Amazon, and per the UPS tracking, it's already hit my city. I'd love it if I got it today, but I'm sure they won't deliver it until tomorrow.<< The weird thing is, this is totally unnecessary. I pre-ordered mine at Barnes and Noble too, and unless they are doing something different at each store (which I seriously doubt) then there's no point in waiting in line. I went to mine about an hour after they opened today, walked in, and picked up my wristband. They're lettered A-Z with 50 people assigned to each letter. I got the letter B, so I'm in the top 100. I'll show up tonight between 11-11:30 and will still be in the top 100. It's pointless to camp out, unless it's your idea of a good time (and for some people, I guess it is).
Originally Posted By threeundertwo >>some jerk shout out any spoilers at people waiting in line (as apparently happened at some stores for book 6)>> I would be so furious. I don't know what I'd do if somebody did that around me.
Originally Posted By threeundertwo You scared me, so I just called my local store. They're giving out wristbands starting at 6pm.
Originally Posted By ecdc >>I would be so furious. I don't know what I'd do if somebody did that around me.<< I know! Here I am a grown-up and I'm thinking "I could not be held accountable for my actions if someone gave away the plot to a children's book." What hath J.K. Rowling wrought
Originally Posted By nevadarebel I am one of those that love spoilers but I also do not ever share it. It is a personal issue with me and does not change anything for me. I still will be up all night reading it from front to back but I will know before I go to Borders what happened for sure. I absolutely will not even tell my children what I know either. <---waiting patiently.......
Originally Posted By seanyoda Don't forget! Bloomsbury (the British publishers) will be hosting a webcast of J.K. Rowling reading from Deathly Hallows at 23:50 British Summer Time TONIGHT -- that translates to 6:50 PM WDW time and 3:50 PM Disneyland Time. The website is <a href="http://www.bloomsbury.com/" target="_blank">http://www.bloomsbury.com/</a>
Originally Posted By seanyoda If you can't attend any parties, Barnes and Noble will have a webcast of their New York City party at 9:00 PM WDW time / 6:00 PM Disneyland time. Go to <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/" target="_blank">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/</a> for more info.
Originally Posted By Elderp All but one of my predictions were wrong. I didn't buy the book, but my guess that many people wouldn't wait to post the plot and ending on the internet within minutes were right.
Originally Posted By threeundertwo I just finished it. Now I need to go buy some more kleenex to replenish the stock I used up. Loved it. I want to reread the whole series again now. I was right about a few things. Didn't see any of the specific deaths coming and cried at each of them (well, maybe not Moody's). The scene with Dobby was so beautifully written. I could tell when my daughter hit that page because tears just started rolling down her face. I probably didn't need the epilogue, but it was cute. I was right about Snape. I was right and wrong about Harry. I had heard those theories about the horcruxes, so there weren't big surprises there. I did enjoy the red herring that was planted with Fleur's little tiara at the wedding. We had a great time at the Barnes and Noble party last night. My daughter won for best costume (Bellatrix) and she got a poster autographed by Mary Grandpre, which is pretty cool. I need a nap now.
Originally Posted By ecdc I just finished, and I can say without hyperbole or exaggeration, that this is the greatest book in the history of time. At least, that's how I felt reading it. I really, really loved everything about it. ****Spoilers**** Dobby's death was definitely the saddest, with Fred's a close second. But what I loved about this book, that seemed to be a bit of a problem in the last two, was that the overall plot wasn't overshadowed by the whole "who lives, who dies" question. Even if Harry died (and I'm thrilled he didn't) it wouldn't detract from the story she told. I was *exactly* right about Snape and his motivations, even getting it right that Dumbledore was going to die anyway. I was right and wrong about Harry as well. I didn't think he was a horcrux, but I did envision him being "killed" and then returning (though I pictured him walking back through the veil in the department of mysteries). It really was a perfect ending to a great series.
Originally Posted By chickapin Wow--she certainly packed a lot into 759 pages! It was a bit of a blood bath for awhile, but I expected that. I too was right about Snape and wrong about Harry being a horcrux. Loved the change in Kreature when shown kindness. A great book and I'll need to start reading it again as soon as DH is finished!
Originally Posted By Shooba The only "spoiler" I knew of going in was the widely-held theory that Harry is a horcrux. It wasn't really much of a spoiler as some manner of link between Harry and Voldemort was very clearly spelled out in this book. I just assumed the book would take place at Hogwart's again, with Snape elsewhere, so it was a bit of a surprise that the book was that much of a departure from the rest of the series. The degree of violence at the beginning was almost shocking, but set a tone, and prepared people (especially young readers) for what was to follow. Dobby's death was the saddest part for me, and was very well written. I never thought Snape would turn out to be evil. Rowling made it way too "obvious" that he was evil, and in these books if something is that "obvious", you can count on the opposite happening. Didn't think Harry would die, but if he did I thought it would take the form of a sacrifice. No surprise there. Rowling is an amazing writer. I don't read a lot any more, but I had no problem polishing this book off over seven straight hours. I actually feel a bit exhausted!
Originally Posted By threeundertwo My daughter and I were sharing our feelings on this. To her, the saddest moment was seeing the chapter heading where Hagrid is shown holding Harry's lifeless body - she said it instantly reminded her of the beginning of the first book when he carried baby Harry. She pointed out that Fred's last words were delight and laughter that Percy had made a joke. Made me cry all over again. Most bittersweet moment: Finding the pictures Luna had put on the ceiling of her room with the words "friends" all around them. Missing from the epilogue: what became of the joke shop? Did George carry on? What careers did they all choose? Did Luna and Dean get together? Not crucial to the story but interesting. We had a discussion about Draco and Percy and Neville and how the person you are at the start of your teenage years can become a very different person by the end of your teenage years. Great conversation for a 10 year old. Question: We see the Bloody Baron leading the headless hunt - are they joining in the battle in some way or just going about business as usual?
Originally Posted By LVBelle Whew, just finished a bit ago! Jake woke us up at 4:30 this morning so I ran over to the grocery store. They had posters up but no books out so I asked and they had them in back! I guess I was the first one to come in demanding one, they brought out a case right away, I bought one for me and one for hubby and we were happily reading a few minutes later. Reading it was so bittersweet, it's hard to believe it's over. I did love it though. Fred's death really got me, I cried and cried. I'm sure I have lots more to say but I just can't think of it all now, it's so much to process...
