Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Summary: Plot, Characters and Ending
In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry's sixth year, Dumbledore begins private lessons to show him Voldemort's past and the secret of his survival: Horcruxes. Meanwhile Harry suspects Draco Malfoy of a dark mission. A night journey to find a Horcrux ends in tragedy on the Astronomy Tower.
It is the sixth book in the Harry Potter series.
| Character | Who they are |
|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Sixth-year student |
| Albus Dumbledore | Headmaster, Harry's mentor |
| Severus Snape | New Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher |
| Horace Slughorn | Returning Potions teacher |
| Draco Malfoy | Student given a secret task |
| Ginny Weasley | Harry's love |
| Ron and Hermione | Harry's best friends |
| Narcissa Malfoy | Draco's mother |
| Tom Riddle | Voldemort's younger self |
How does the book begin?
Narcissa Malfoy begs Snape to protect her son Draco, whom Voldemort has given a near-impossible task. Snape makes an Unbreakable Vow to help Draco and to carry out the task himself if Draco fails. Dumbledore takes Harry to persuade the old teacher Horace Slughorn to return to Hogwarts.
↑ Back to the topWhat is the Half-Blood Prince's book?
In Potions, Harry borrows an old textbook covered in handwritten notes by someone calling himself the Half-Blood Prince. Following its tips, Harry becomes Slughorn's star student. The book also contains spells, including the dangerous Sectumsempra.
↑ Back to the topWhat does Dumbledore teach Harry?
Using the Pensieve, Dumbledore shows Harry memories of Tom Riddle's family, childhood and school years. One memory has been altered: Slughorn's. Harry uses luck potion to get the real one, in which young Riddle asks about Horcruxes, objects that hold a piece of a person's spirit and keep them from dying. Riddle wanted to split his into seven. The diary and a ring are already destroyed.
↑ Back to the topWhat is Draco doing?
Harry is sure Draco has become a Death Eater. A cursed necklace nearly kills Katie Bell, and Ron is poisoned by mead meant for Dumbledore. In a bathroom fight Harry uses Sectumsempra on Draco without knowing what it does, and Snape saves him. Harry and Ginny finally get together, and Ron and Hermione stop fighting.
↑ Back to the topHow does Half-Blood Prince end?
Dumbledore takes Harry to a sea cave to find a Horcrux, a locket in a basin of potion. Dumbledore drinks the potion, which weakens him terribly, and Harry fights off an army of the dead. They return to find the Dark Mark over the Astronomy Tower. Draco disarms Dumbledore but cannot kill him. Death Eaters arrive through a repaired vanishing cabinet. Snape arrives and kills Dumbledore with the Killing Curse, then flees, revealing that he is the Half-Blood Prince.
The locket turns out to be a fake, left by someone with the initials R.A.B. who means to destroy the real one. After Dumbledore's funeral, Harry tells Ron and Hermione he will not return to school; he will hunt the Horcruxes instead, and they insist on going with him.
↑ Back to the topMore about Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
This summary reveals the whole plot, including the ending.