More Potter

I was just thinking about the whole issue of knowing that someone was going to die in HP5 and it would be upsetting and I came to an interesting conclusion: You're meant to be afraid that anyone could die at any moment.

JK Rowling has been very public that someone was going to die, and that it was very upsetting for her to write it. This is almost the theme of all the marketing. When you read the book, you're always thinking that one of the main characters could die at any point. It creates a real tension and drags you into the story. It makes each encounter very real: every time there's a conflict you're going "Oh no! It's not *him* (or *her*) is it?" Perhaps this is to bring you, the reader, into the mindset of the Wizarding world now that Voldemort is back.