Finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling.

Wow.

This book absolutely blew me away. It was that good. I know, I know, everyone else has read it already. But still. I always forget how wonderful these books are until I read them. They more than live up to the hype each and every time.

Wow. 😯 If I could write something a tenth as good as Rowling, I’d be one happy camper.

I’m not going to recap the plot since everyone knows it’s the final showdown between Harry and Voldemort. Instead, I’m going to talk about what I loved about the book. Here are some of my favorites:

1) My absolute favorite thing is how Rowling tied everything together so beautifully. She brought back so many things and characters that were mentioned in previous books — Dobby, the mysterious locket found in Book 5, Dumbledore’s mangled hand, the scene where Harry’s father tortures Snape at school — and made them all make sense and further the story. As someone who writes a series, I really, really appreciate this. I usually drop names and characters and minor plot points two to three books ahead before they appear, but I’m nowhere near Rowling’s level. She is truly a grand master.  

2) Neville. Neville has probably shown more growth than any other character, going from a shy boy to a rebellious hero. Remember when Harry found out that Neville could also have been the boy of the prophecy and that Voldemort and his minions made Neville’s parents insane as a result? So how appropriate was it that Neville would be the one to draw the sword out of the hat and kill Voldemort’s snake — destroying the final Horcrux. Poetic justice.

3) Snape. Oh, Severus. We finally now why you do the things you do — because you loved Harry’s mother ever since you were both children. This was one of the most beautiful things about the story — how love truly can conquer evil in so many ways. (More on Snape to come).

4) Dumbledore’s gifts to Harry, Ron, and Hermoine. I love these sorts of puzzles that Rowling puts into the story and watching the characters try to figure out what the items really mean.

5) Learning more about Dumbledore. Finally, we get some more insight into his past and why he does the things he does.

However, the book isn’t without its problems, minor though they are. Here are some of my quibbles:

1) The time in the woods where Harry, Ron, and Hermoine are camping drags a little bit. I read one reviewer say that it felt like Rowling was drawing the time out to make it match the year format of the other books. I think the reviewer is right. That section could have easily been cut down 20 or 30 pages.

2) Sometimes, I get rather tired of the angsty Harry, who is angry at Dumbledore for not telling him everything and feeling rather sorry for himself. Harry, you knew it was going to come down to you vs Voldemort for seven years now. It’s not fair, it’s not right, but that’s how it is. You also knew Dumbledore couldn’t risk information falling into the wrong hands. I think it’s time you accepted those facts and concentrated on stopping Voldemort, instead of whining about it.

3) The same thing goes for angsty Ron, who is still insecure around Harry. Don’t you know, Ron, that Harry wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for you (and Hermoine)? He would have died back in one of the earlier books. You are just as much a hero as he is, even if other people don’t quite see it that way.

4) I also kind of thought Rowling killed Hedwig off just because it would have been difficult to include the owl in the whole story. But maybe it’s just me.

5) Rowling lost me at times. I didn’t really understand the bit about the wands and who was master of what until I read an article in Entertainment Weekly explaining it. Also, it was difficult keeping up with the number of Horcruxes and what was what and what book it appeared in. 

6) I also would have liked another scene with Harry and Snape (and more Snape in general). I think that could have been really powerful, them coming face to face with all the secrets revealed between them. And I really, really wanted one more scene at the very end in the epilogue, maybe just a glimpse into Dumbledore’s office at Hogwarts with his and Snape’s portaits up on the walls. Maybe even with little Albus Severus there.

Still, big, big thumbs up. This is the best book I’ve read so far this year. I’m sure a lot of people would agree with me. 😎

I’ll be doing a couple of posts on Harry Potter so stay tuned for more …

What about you? Did Harry Potter live up to the hype? Inquiring minds want to know …

Finished Full Throttle by Wendy Etherington. I met Wendy at RWA and sat next to her at the Literacy Signing. A very nice, funny lady. We talked about NASCAR for a while, since I live close to a town that has a track.

This book focuses on car chief Lexie Mercer, who can’t figure out what’s wrong with her star driver, Kane Jackson. Turns out Kane has been distracted lately — by Lexie. The two have a history together, and Kane wants to pick up where they left off. Lexie isn’t so sure that’s a good idea, though, given how their NASCAR team is trying to make the Chase for the championship.

This is one of a series of NASCAR romances that Harlequin is putting out. I read somewhere that the books weren’t allowed to have any sex scenes in them. Maybe no drinking, smoking, or cursing either. (Which doesn’t really reflect what NASCAR or even real life are like. C’mon. Who doesn’t cuss from time to time?).

I don’t remember the exact details about the no-nos, but I can say if you’re looking for a sex scene, you’ll be disappointed. Most of the action happens behind closed doors. But if you want a behind-the-scenes look at the world of racing, you’ll probably enjoy it nonetheless.

So, thumbs up.

Up next: Not quite sure. Maybe another RWA book or I might tear into that Harry Potter package I finally got from Amazon …

Finished Bad Girls Don’t by Cathie Linz. This is a book I got at the Berkley signing at RWA, and I met Cathie at my agency party. She was a really sweet lady. Very funny. Very friendly.

Bad Girls Don’t focuses on Skye Wright, a free spirit and self-described “bad girl” who teaches yoga and belly-dancing classes to make ends meet. It’s not long before she butts heads with Nathan Thorton, a by-the-book sheriff who has his hands full keeping the kooky characters of Rock Cree, Pa. in line. Sparks fly between the two, and, well, you can imagine what happens next. 😉

This book is classified as a romantic comedy, but it reminded me a lot of the old screwball comedy movies, like Bringing Up Baby or His Girl Friday, both with Cary Grant. Lots of funny, slightly absurd situations. Lots of rat-a-tat dialogue. Lots of folks who are little bit off their rockers.

My only quibble is that the rapid-fire dialogue got a little hard to follow at times. I had to go back up and count down the lines to see who was saying what. But if you like eccentric characters driving each other crazy in a small town, you’ll like this book.

So, thumbs up.

Up next: Full Throttle by Wendy Etherington — A NASCAR romance.