To me, this was 4 stars because it made me so happy and I already can't wait to read it again, but I can't rate it as high as the HP series. Just being back in Harry/Hermione/Ron's world made me smile and I can tell that JK Rowling's mind was involved here even though she didn't technically write the script. (You can tell this is NOT her writing) Still so many twists and turns and things I would never have expected. This story was deep and emotional and no holds barred. I don't want to spoil any of it so I won't say anything specific about the plot. Yes there were a few discrepancies, but overall SO ENJOYABLE.

Harry Potter is not just an extremely famous wizard, he is also a friend, a husband, a parent, a PERSON. And so are those around him. This is what this story is all about. Yes there is magic, but the theme seemed to be more about love and family and how relationships are hard and need to be constantly examined and worked out. No this doesn't sound like the normal theme for a "childrens book about magic", but these were important in the first 7 and are important still.

The play script style was really interesting and I enjoyed this new element. I highly recommend reading it out loud or at least reading it slowly enough to imagine it all unfolding in your mind on a stage. It makes things very different at least to me. I took this as another glimpse into Harry's life and to me it didn't take anything away from the original 7 stories. Yes characters have changed (some older, some acting differently than we would expect). But this can happen with time and I trust JK to know what these characters would be like.

If you love Harry Potter, I think it's worthwhile to read this with an open mind.