Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince has slowly become another one of my favorite Harry Potter books.  When I first read it, it was during the summer time and I had my mind on other things - or other books more likely.  I was planning on reading a book titled Eragon after I finished up with Harry Potter and was pretty excited to read that book - so much so that I sped through Harry Potter without really really getting the entire weight of this book.  The only thing I remember is that I vividly imagined the cave scene at the end and in my opinion the scene in the movie adaption was by far one of the best scenes in the entire series.
This book is really heavy with emotions!  It has romance, comedy, suspense, death, and mystery.  Of course, every Potter book has these qualities but it is the sixth installment that really hits things home about how serious the fight with Voldemort is going to be. 
Harry begins the year in a distraught state.  He has just lost the only person he considered family to him, Sirius Black, and is worried about the fight with Voldemort and the prophecy he just heard at the end of the school year.  With the new school year comes new challenges which involve quidditch, dating, and personal one on one classes with Dumbledore himself.  The

point of these classes?  To study Voldemort and figure out his weaknesses so that he can be defeated.
What do I love about this book?  I love how intricate it is.  In my opinion, this is the book that really reveals it all and is a very interesting character psychology study on villains.  The book is very coming of age and dark.  It is the first time we see Harry get to work as an equal with Dumbledore.  I love the Ron and Hermione romantic bits and I also love Harry's interaction with the new minister of magic, calling himself Dumbledore's man through and through - that scene is my favorite in the book.  J.K. Rowling's writing got better and better with each book and it is obvious while reading this book.  Not only is her writing superb but her characterization is brilliant.  In this aspect I am obviously referring to Voldemort.  The reader learns of Voldemort's heritage and his past and how he became the villain they must defeat. Snape is also a prime example of Rowling's masterful characterization.  For those who know Snape's true allegiance, reading this book is a real treat.  It is so great to see that Rowling doesn't underestimate her reader.  She doesn't make Snape conform so that we easily see his true allegiance before the ending.  She keeps him a solid character with his own motives and quite frankly he is, in my opinion, one of the best and most complex characters of the series next to Dumbledore.
To put it simply, I love this book.  It is definitely a favorite!  I will give it 5 out of 5 stars...of course.