Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Cover art of the first UK edition
Author	J. K. Rowling
Illustrator	Jason Cockcroft (first edition)
Language	English
Series	Harry Potter
Release number	6th in series
Genre	Fantasy
Publisher	Bloomsbury (UK)
Publication date	16 July 2005
Publication place	United Kingdom
Pages	607 (first edition)
ISBN	0-7475-8108-8
Dewey Decimal	823.914
Preceded by	Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Followed by	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a fantasy novel written by British author J. K. Rowling and the sixth and penultimate novel in the Harry Potter series. Set during Harry Potter's sixth year at Hogwarts, the novel explores the past of the boy wizard's nemesis, Lord Voldemort, and Harry's preparations for the final battle against Voldemort alongside his headmaster and mentor Albus Dumbledore.

The book was published in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury and in the United States by Scholastic on 16 July 2005, as well as in several other countries. It sold almost seven million copies in the first 24 hours after its release,^[1] a record eventually broken by its sequel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.^[2] There were many controversies before and after it was published, including the right-to-read copies delivered before the release date in Canada. Reception to the novel was generally positive, and it won several awards and honours, including the 2006 British Book of the Year award.

Reviewers noted that the book had a darker tone than its predecessors, though it did contain some humour. Some considered the main themes love, death, trust, and redemption. The considerable character development of Harry and many other teenage characters also drew attention.