Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom and Severus Snape

I had thought for some time (especially since the movies started coming out) that I was quite over Harry Potter. But all the excitement of Goblet of Fire, which had I read when I was 14, was back. Spectacular, theatrical, brilliant, witty, grand, thrilling.... Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows gives all the answers and solves all the riddles.

[DO NOT READ BEYOND THIS IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOK YET!]

Deathly Hallows is reminiscent of Lord of the Rings (sometimes quite starkly) in its grandeur, but I love how Rowling moves beyond the good-vs-evil theme to explore the gray areas in the life of Dumbledore, as well as Voldemort. The exploration of ideas such as death, and "the greater good" as perceived by the elite, are also very intriguing. Most of all, I love the treatment given to characters like Snape and Dobby, the book's tragic heroes. Here lies Dobby, a free elf. Beautiful!

Though it is a children's book that may perhaps lack the subtlety of fully rounded characters, it is still a masterpiece. For me, its magic lay in the way it made me feel like a child once more, especially when the whole of Hogwarts prepared for battle (like when the people of Rohan took arms against Saruman but much more intense, as all magical creatures joined in). While I mourn the deaths of the fallen, I must say I have not felt this thrilled, excited, amazed and scared since the summer camp. Lastly, I had always known that Dumbledore must have asked Snape to kill him. Aha! I was right!