[Gayle]

I love Snape - he's developed into a really central character and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the last book hinges on him. I think it's partly to do with the Alan Rickman effect in the films - JK Rowling has seen how people have enjoyed that character and she has developed him more and more.

Snape's definitely on the good side - he had a few opportunities to kill Harry. Just walking up the dark path with him when he got locked out of the school would have been an ideal opportunity.

I don't think Dumbledore is actually dead - or if he is, he'll talk to Harry a lot in the next book through other means. He might be a diary or a picture but in the next book Harry has to realise that he hasn't been abandoned completely as I'm pretty sure that the end will be a happy one.

Think the romance is pretty good but I would have thought it would have been better if there had been a bit of triangle thing going on. It would have been more likely that Hermione wouldn't have been able to choose between Harry and Ron, but the Harry and Ginny thing is a bit convenient.