Then things get really dark and serious. Harry finds himself faced with a true challenge. Granted, the problems that having nearly god-like powers with magic show up as the author ignores or simply forgot about spells Harry knew early one whenever it's convenient. That aside, the story has many other elements, the evil wizard is back, and the plot revolving around him is unveiled in a very good climactic sense. We get to see some of how the magical universe works as it relates to the hard working elves, and the Ministry of Magic. Rowling also raised the issue I was hoping they would eventually raise: Romance. These characters are coming of age, and it's about time they throw in some romantic elements. And the headmaster of Hogwarts is finally shown to have some depth, and explanation of who he is comes very well placed.

All in all, this is a great story, with plenty of sub-plots to keep you interested. This book, more so than any of the others felt very much like some of the stories I've read targeted for adults. No doubt, there are still themes in here that seem to only be in the book to cater to the younger audience, but at least in this book, reading those sections didn't feel like such a different feeling from the rest of the book.