Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

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Author: J. K. Rowling
Illustrator: Jason Cockcroft (UK),
William Webb and Michael Wildsmith (UK adult), Mary GrandPré (US)
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC, Scholastic Press, Allen & Unwin
Release date: July 21, 2007
Number in series: Seven
Story timeline: Summer 1997 – TBD
Preceded by: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

Seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series of novels by J. K. Rowling. The book is scheduled to be released globally in English-speaking countries immediately after midnight (00:01), British Summer Time, on 21 July 2007. In the United States, it is to be released for sale within each separate time zone at 00:01 local time, a few hours after other English-speaking countries.

The book reached the top spot on both the Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble bestseller lists just a few hours after the date of publication was announced on 1 February 2007. Retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Borders are reporting that more orders have been placed for this book than for any other in history, and American publisher Scholastic announced an unprecedented initial print run of 12 million copies.[6] The book is expected to be 608 pages in the British edition, and has been confirmed to be 784 pages in the US edition.

Rowling made a public request that anyone with advance information about the last book should keep it to themselves to avoid spoiling the reading experience for the many fans who do not want to know the ending in advance.[9] To this end, Bloomsbury invested 10 million pounds in an attempt to keep the book's contents secure until the July 21 release date.

In a web update on 6 February 2007, she wrote:

"While each of the previous Potter books has strong claims on my affections, 'Deathly Hallows' is my favourite, and that is the most wonderful way to finish the series."


When asked "What does 'Deathly Hallows' mean?" J.K. Rowling responded, "Any clarification of the meaning of 'Hallows' would give away too much of the story – well, it would, wouldn't it? Being the title and all. So I'm afraid I'm not answering." She also declined to say what her other shortlisted title had been, at least until after publication. The phrase "Deathly Hallows" was trademarked under the name "Stone Connect (UK) Limited" on December 5, 2006, along with 5 other phrases. It was later denied that any of the others had ever been contenders for the actual title. The word "hallows" had already appeared in phrases registered by representatives of Warner Brothers before publication of Half-Blood Prince. "Hallows of Hogwarts" and "Hogwarts Hallows" were registered as trademarks by Seabottom Productions Ltd in 2003-2004, amongst a number of fake titles.

What is known about the plot

Rowling completed the book while staying at the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh in January 2007, and left a signed statement on a marble bust of Hermes in her room which read: "JK Rowling finished writing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in this room (652) on 11 January 2007". She has stated that the final volume relates very closely to the previous book in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, so much so that the two books are "almost as though they are two halves of the same novel."[32] Prior to completing the manuscript, Rowling stated that she could not change the ending of the book, even if she wanted to. "These books have been plotted for such a long time, and for six books now, that they're all leading a certain direction. So, I really can't."