WOW! I have been waiting and secretly praying for the day that J.K. Rowling decides to change her mind about never writing the Harry Potter series again and I am so glad she did! Since I finished the series in 2011, I have not been able to pick it back up for the fear that once again I'll get lost in the Harry Potter world and not be able to come out.

When I heard there was to be a new Harry Potter book, I jumped for joy! And I was so excited to get my hands on it and when I did, I dug right in! And when I finished, I wrote this review.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is the eighth book in the series written by J.K Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany. And I use the term book loosely as it isn't a novel. It is written as a script the same way Romeo and Juliet was. I do not recommend reading this review if you have not read the other seven books in the series.

If you are one of those people who have not read the other Harry Potter book, do read them because they really are lovely and well written and I absolutely adored them! I do not have reviews for them on my blog because like I said before, I did read them a really long time ago but I am sure there are lots of other reviews floating around on the internet that you can find.

But anyway, just keep reading to see what I thought of the book.

About the book. 

Book: Harry Potter And The Cursed Child: Parts One And Two
Series: Harry Potter
Author: J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany, Jack Thorne
Pages: 343
Publisher: Little Brown UK
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Synopsis: It was always difficult being Harry Potter and it isn’t much easier now that he is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, a husband and father of three school-age children.

While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.
Genre: Childrens/Young Adult/Adult, Fantasy
Recommended for: Anyone who enjoyed the other Harry Potter books

SUMMARY 

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is, like mentioned above, the eighth book in the series. It follows the story of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine and Ron but also the story of his son, Albus and his friend, Scorpious (Draco's son).

Harry Potter is an overworked ministry worker who cannot seem to shake off his past with Voldemort and the Battle Of Hogwarts and it seems, neither can Albus, who must bear the weight of the family legacy. 

The script follows the father and the son as they make their way through adventures and learn more about each other and their past, in doing so.

IDEA 

As far as ideas go, this one isn't too bad. I can see where it came from and I feel it fit quite well into the story line. But it was also slightly disappointing. J.K. Rowling is known for her beautifully woven, magical and intriguing ideas that have lots of mystery and surprises as you go along but this one left me quite un-surprised. 

There were some 'OMG' moments but not as often as I had with the other books in the series. I feel the book didn't have the extra sprinkle of magic that comes with J.K. Rowling and left me feeling slightly 'meh' about it at the end. 

PLOT 

This is slightly similar to the 'idea' portion of the review but I felt the script could have had a more interesting and engaging story line. I didn't feel as if the book was very conclusive or completed. 

A part of me wonders if Rowling intended to finish the series after Deathly Hallows but then reopened it recently for the play. Deathly Hallows was so much more conclusive in the sense that everything had been solved, the characters had moved on and life had resumed and I feel like by re-opening the story line, it just feels odd and incomplete now.

Don't get me wrong. I am very happy that another book of the series is out and we get to see the characters and how they've grown up and matured over time but a small part of me wants it to have finished with Deathly Hallows. 

Despite saying all that, the story line is enjoyable and the plot is interesting. I feel it would be better to watch it on stage than to read it in a book however. 

CHARACTERS 

One thing I've seen pointed out in quite a few reviews and wholly agree with is how different the original characters are now. 

Harry seems too dull and unadventurous. And Draco was WAAAAYYY too nice. Hermoine and Ron stayed fairly similar to her original character to the most part. 

Albus was an enjoyable character and it is easy to see that he is Harry's son when you look at his personality. However, I feel there needs to be more of a conclusion in regards to Albus's character or at least a few more books showing his development. 

Scorpious was my favourite character for how sweet and kind he was. I was quite surprised that Draco's son was such a lovely person. I liked how innocent and selfless he was and how he was always chipper and optimistic. 

I don't think I got to know the characters very well in the script, which is understandable as it is designed to be watched rather than read, which is why I don't really have much else to add. 

FINALLY...

It's a good script. It's enjoyable and entertaining but as I mentioned before, it would be better watched than read and if it did ever come to Melbourne, I'll be the first in line to buy tickets for sure. If you are a Harry Potter fan, read it because I'm sure you'll enjoy it. There are many bookstagrammers who have been raving about how much they loved the book. 

And while I didn't love it to bits and pieces, I did quite like it. Do read it. It's nice.