(Edit: Thanks to Aaron for suggesting adding a spoiler warning)

Just a quick blog to say I am really starting to get excited about the forthcoming release of Harry Potter 7 - The Deathly Hallows. It's due out in Hardback on July 21st, and I've already got my pre-order in at Amazon. Probably going to get another one as well, to avoid squabbles in our house. This has got to be one of the most anticipated books ever, and is bound to break records for quickest/biggest sales... Just how is JK Rowling going to wrap things up? Is Harry going to defeat Voldemort, will he die in the process? Will Ron and Hermione get together? Is Dumbledore really dead and is Snape really a servant of the Dark Lord? Oooohhhh

I've been reading HP5 - The Order of the Phoenix - and will be reading book 6, The Half-Blood Prince next, in order to remind myself of things before the big launch.

Interestingly, Warner Bos are releasing the film version of the Order of the Phoenix a week earlier - July 13th. See a trailer here and read lots of details re cast members etc here.

A few of my predictions for HP7 - just my own ravings, you understand, I'm not plagiarising anyone else's theories:

* It's going to get messy.

* Harry will defeat Voldemort but will have to relinquish his magical powers in the process

* Hermione will die

* Dumbledore will not come back. This, after all, Harry's battle.

* Snape will turn out to be on the goodies' side after all - there was some reason as yet unknown why he 'turned bad' at the end of book 6

* We will encounter Dumbledore's brother, Aberforth ( allegedly the bartender at the Hog's Head in Hogsmead), and he will have a significant role to play.

* Harry's scar itself is one of Voldemort's Horcruxes - in which case, maybe Harry does die, in order to take himself out and save the world.....

Anyway, time will tell.... All credit to Madame Rowling for delivering us so painstakingly to this denouement. 3 cheers!

And speaking of denouements, you could do worse than take the time to download and listen to Mike Bennett's One Among the Sleepless- he's connected as one of my MySpace friends. It's a podcast novel written and performed by Mike. It's very good, extremely funny (Mike's vocal characterizations on the podcast are amazing), pretty saucy, and rather suspenseful... We're currently 25 episodes in and there are 8 weeks to go. Once again, it is fascinating to see how the various strands of the story will come together. I should add 'people who can create credible plots' to my list of heroes, because it's a talent I've certainly never been able to master!