AnHeC (I'm too fucking busy and vice versa)

word count: 257 045

rating: It's a difficult love

*I don't know what had me thinking I'd have any time to read at this time of year. First it was exams, then cooking and cleaning before Christmas, then family time  & shitload of obligations (3 fucking days of Christmas), then we found out a distant family (that we haven't seen for 15 years) want to come to visit and stay for a few days, so again - a day of preparations and 4 days of entertaining guests, being nice, cleaning, cooking and babysitting... So now I decided to spend the new year's eve alone, reading the 6th tome of HP and drinking vine (is that pathetic?). One more day with people and I may have had a nervous breakdown, so no party for me this year (fuck).  The introvert inside of me is on a verge of self mutilation

How cheerful, now lets proceed with this short review.

The Goblet of Fire changed the tone of the series. It stopped being 'safe & fun adventures for young and old' and turned into something more serious. But not all was abandoned, this series (and its world and characters) evolve gradually, so the things we grew to love weren't abandoned.

There still is the school we love, humour, mischief, Fred & Gerorge, Weasleys, lessons, ghosts, feasts, magical beasts... all the fun stuff + more. Umbridge and the organized defiance against her were fun; so much fun I didn't mind the length of the book at all.

Harry changed, in this instalment he's a sullen teenager. He acts like a total 15-year-old (which he is) so that's great. When I was his age it made me a bit uncomfortable to see him like this, now I just enjoy the ride and the whole process of growing up with anger, angst, fear, love, awkwardness and all that jazz ^^

When I read this book for the first time it hit me hard, it still does, but now I see it differently. At the end of this book you just know: all bets are off, nobody's safe. That matters. It makes things so much more exciting and slowly shifts focus more and more away from the school stuff.

Also, I don't blame Harry as much for how things turned out. He really did his best. It's Dumbledore that fucked up in a big way. Lets not tell teenagers about things. That should keep them away from stuff, right? Yeeeeeahhh. So full of shit. If he just told him some stuff a whole heap of drama could've been avoided. Just saying. He didn't have to tell him about everything, but come on!

Harry was stupid - touching shit and making reckless decisions, but not as stupid as I thought at first. I just really liked Sirius (though the memories of Snape helped me cope).

This book was long, but it contained many elements. Rowling didn't compromise, didn't cut down on things to make it shorter. She said it all and I loved it.  I could feel Harry's pain, his loss, his anger; more than that, I understood it. And it made something deep inside me ache. THAT is something. I love this book. I love the whole thing. It has so many emotional tones! So many things happening on different levels! Brilliant. Simply brilliant.