~ Half-Blood Prince was better than Order of the Phoenix—way better. Dumbledore taking Harry under his wing was a breath of fresh air after the great deal of nothing in the previous book. Most of the sub-plots were interesting, particularly Harry and Dumbledore searching various memories for clues about the horcruxes and unearthing Voldemort’s fascinating backstory in the process. Especially when compared with Order of the Phoenix, Half-blood Prince was compelling, and of the later books it’s quite possibly the best.

The problems with this one are relatively small compared to those of the fifth book. The trend of putting Harry’s importance above the lives of all others continues, summed up with the line, “Your blood is far more precious than mine,” and it becomes annoying at times.