Reading Wednesday

Finished
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - I wrote enough about this last time, I think. As will become clear below, I've now cemented this as my favorite installment in the series.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - I remember being disappointed with this book when it came out. After the intense battle at the end of the last book and the Ministry of Magic having been proven clearly wrong (so everyone had to accept that Lord Voldemort was really & truly back), it felt dishonest for everyone to just go back to school. This book is largely about Voldemort, with the Deathly Hallows being largely about Dumbledore. I didn't really care to learn too much about Voldemort or his family. I did like the end-bit better than I remembered - pretty much everything from Harry & Dumbledore going off to the cave with the locket on through the end is solid writing.
I felt bad for Luna and Neville in this book - their being the only to notice the DA coins was sad to me. Overall I wish that Harry, Hermione, and Ron could have hung out with the two of them more, and been better friends to them in this book.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - I do & do not like how Harry & co. do not have a clear plan for how they're going to destroy horcruxes. They fly by the seat of their pants; it's hard to figure things out but lots of interactions with random people help them make connections; it's probably more realistic for them to work things out so slowly. Still, they spent way too much time fighting in the woods :(
I really like that Harry was kind to Kreacher, who them seem to rediscover readings for living, and made Grimmauld Place a clean & healthy place to live, even while they're hiding.
Lots of great scenes in this book, obviously. The scene with the Resurrection Stone is probably my favorite.
The epilogue did not bother me at all this time.


Leading up to the end, I tweeted a lot about wanting HP fic recs, especially bureaucratic after-book fics about Harry/Ron/Hermione and the politics involved in working for the Ministry of Magic.
I have LOTS of fic recs to work through (and am very glad about it!).

I started with
Lust Over Pendle by A.J. Hall. Described by the author, "Lust Over Pendle is a comedy of manners set in the Golden Age detective thriller genre, and is presumed to take place after the end of the seventh Harry Potter book, and, therefore, after the fall of Voldemort."
This is a Draco/Neville fic. I definitely didn't read it with a pre-inclination for the pairing, *g*
Basically, Draco defected from the Death Eaters toward the end of the war, but people still don't believe he's "turned" to the good side, & feel incredulous about his relationship with Neville (revealed to their families & the Wizarding public when a photo gets published in The Daily Prophet).
This fic - the dialogue, characters, writing style - drips with class privilege, I think.
I love the dogs. I like Hermione helping out by totally pwning ass. I love that Harry's just shunted off to the side after acting like an idiot, with everyone understanding that things will work out better if he's just out of the way.
I like that people who are caricatures in the main series feel very real in this fic (Colin Creevy, Neville's grandmother, Draco Malfoy, etc.). I like Neville's love for gardening being an asset and a real hobby. I like the interactions with Muggles, with them being real people. I liked Melanie very much as an original character.
There's more in this series - lots of short stories and a sequel "novel" to Lust Over Pendle. I'm looking forward to reading more.


Currently Reading
Cold Steel, & I'm trying to read it really fast because it's due back at the library Saturday ;__;
I've only read a few chapters since picking this up again after finishing Lust Over Pendle.
I love Kate Elliott's writing. I love these characters. Very grateful for this trilogy.