Shop Ireland

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter 5) by: J.K. Rowling

Click to tell a friend about this item...

More Product Details...

Review Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next »

Click here to add a review!

Average rating -

Rating: - Political Potter maintains interest but lacks spice

After a shock attack by Dementors in the summer, Harry Potter returns to the magical world with knowledge of the Dark Lord's return and finds no one believes him.

The escapism of the Potter novels is one that readers of all ages can relish. The prospect of seeing our favourite teenage wizard in his fifth year at Hogwarts after that highly dramatic climax to the forth instalment prompted shops to order millions and open at midnight for the release and J.K Rowling has produced another magical wonder.

The return of Lord Voldermort was more than likely inevitable given the history of the evilness of the character and his drastic turn of events in Goblet of Fire made this an anticipated read, one that was due to sprout evil in a more deadly and drastic way. Perhaps sensing this Rowling cleverly keeps Voldermort hushed up as Harry and Dumbledore struggle to make anybody believe them, not even after a strange Dementor attack in the summer, which sprouts many political styled subplots.

As the teenager wizard is growing it is with a sad step that the world of spontaneous adventure and mystery solving is wrapped in a political and soap styled bubble in the fifth fantasy. From Harry's hearing to his first kiss, this is a soap driven book that still maintains a level of undeniable interest in the wizard world, but gives little energy to the concept of adventure. The constant use of inserts from Newspapers is infuriating as is the formula Rowling uses to reflect on happenings.

This is evident when Harry first arrives at the location of the Order of the Phoenix. As all familiar faces are reunited everything is stated, all happenings are revealed and there is little to guess as to what is happening. It's a shame because the first two novels we readers are clutching at straws to comprehend the situation but the spark has been extinguished, and encoding a typical hormonal teen doesn't help matters.

Harry has been left alone without a scrap of news all summer and is infuriated with his friends. He screams shouts and sits alone and as his paranoia builds he is left to his own devices. This device by Rowling is more than the plot's downfall, as the humour also evaporates from his presence also.

The inclusion of the Ministry of Magic gives a greater knowledge of the magical universe but is a bit boring. Umbridge is a spark of her own evilness but otherwise it is flat.

Nevertheless there is still a level of intrigue which has been beautifully built up from the previous books. We are following the annoying character with a great deal of intent and the Dumbledore's Army inclusion and the last twisting climax leave us in no doubt Rowling still has the ability to let us gasp and turn the page with hungry anticipation

6.5/10

Rating: - J.K Rowling is a genius

This book is another perfect addition to the ongoing story of Harry. Rowling manages to link everything together from the previous books and keeps you on your seat throughout. It leads up to the big finish that is the last two books. Amazing! Anyone could enjoy this.

Rating: - The beginning of the end - now there's a war on!

I believe this is my son's favourite, mainly because of the battle in the Department of Mysteries near the end of the book. It's a long wait, almost 700 pages, but it's definitely worth while ploughing through this "slab of a book".
Dumbledore's Army - or DA for short - sees the light of day. With Hermione as organizer and Harry as leader and instructor it's an interesting development that requires a number of students to finally choose side.
Fred and George Weasley really take centre stage in the revolt against the reign of Dolores Umbridge, Hogwarts High Inquisitor, ministerial watch dog and for short while even Headmistress.
Ron is finally in for some success - one can say that he becomes "King of the Quidditch pitch".
My longing for "Hogwarts everyday life" is fully satisfied leading up to the OWL exams; I'm afraid you'll have to wait for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince for the results though.
But as always it's an unpredictable plot introducing Nymphadora Tonks and Bellatrix Lestrange among others soon to be important characters. On top of that one of the main characters is killed, and I can say for sure that this person will not be the last ...!?
I've read this book thrice in Danish - aloud as bedtime story, two chapters a night. It wasn't all that exciting going through it for the forth time, and though many things are translated rather oddly in the Danish version, it hasn't changed my opinion of No. 5. Of course it's also worthy of five stars, but it's still not the best one. Harry Potter and my Subjective Ranking:
1. Prisoner of Azkaban.
2. Half-Blood Prince. (only in Danish so far)
3. Deathly Hallows.
4. Order of the Phoenix.
5. Goblet of Fire.
6. Chamber of Secrets.
7. Philosopher's Stone.
Anyway, this is a roller coaster of a book by J.K. Rowling - I'm tempted to say "wand swingingly exciting"!
The Minister for Magic is now forced to admit that Voldemort is back in business. For you and me this means that the Second War has started!

Rating: - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

excellent audio, very much enjoyed. the cd's go into much more detail than the films, stephen fry is great at telling these stories.

Rating: - The weakest "Potter"

This was the longest and, sadly, weakest of the "Harry Potter" novels. For me the story never really seemed to get going, and was badly in need of editing. Nothing much really seemed to happen in this one, aside from somebody dying at the end (no spoilers) and the Ministry of Magic being visited, and having seen the also disappointing film it is apparent that not a lot happened there either. Some have said that this was their favourite "Potter" book and film, but for me - and almost everyone else I have spoken to about it - this was the nadir of the series.

Review Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next »