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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series of novels by J. K. Rowling. It was released on July 21, 2007 leading to the long-awaited final struggle between Harry Potter and his allies, and the ever-more-powerful and influential Voldemort and his allies, the Death Eaters.

Deathly Hallows broke sales records becoming the fastest selling book ever, selling more than eleven million copies in the first twenty-four hours following its release. The previous record, nine million in its first day, had been held by Half-Blood Prince.

The Plot

Leaving the Dursleys
As Harry Potter's protection at the Dursleys' home will expire when he turns 17, the Order of the Phoenix decides to separately escort Harry and the Dursleys to safety. Despite using Harry impostors as decoys, the real Harry is identified and attacked by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Harry and the others narrowly escape to The Burrow, but Hedwig and Mad-Eye Moody are killed.

A few days later, the Minister for Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, arrives to give Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger bequests from Albus Dumbledore's will: Ron is given Dumbledore's Deluminator, with the power to capture lights; Hermione receives a book of children's stories written in Ancient Runes; Harry inherits Godric Gryffindor's sword and the Snitch he caught in his first ever Quidditch match. The Ministry withholds the sword, claiming it was never Dumbledore's.

Search for the Horcruxes
During the wedding reception for Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour, Kingsley Shacklebolt's Patronus arrives announcing, "The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming." Death Eaters arrive at the wedding and Harry, Ron, and Hermione Apparate to a Muggle street and hide out in a cafe. Moments later, Death Eaters arrive and the trio narrowly escapes, wondering how they were found so quickly. They take refuge at the deserted Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. While there, they discover that Black's brother, Regulus is the "R.A.B." who removed the locket Horcrux from the lake in the cave.[HP6] Learning that Dolores Umbridge now possesses it, they infiltrate the Ministry of Magic using Polyjuice Potion and recover the Horcrux. Unable to get rid of the locket and wanting to keep it safe, they take in turns wearing it and Harry notices each time the wearer has it, they become bitter, angry and unstable. No one is more affected than Ron, who later says that whenever he wore it, it made him "think stuff...it made everything worse."

After several months on the run, the trio overhears a conversation revealing that the Ministry secured the confiscated Gryffindor sword in Bellatrix Lestrange's Gringotts' vault. It was moved from Hogwarts after Ginny, along with several members of the D.A. broke into Snape's office to steal it. She, Neville and Luna were "punished, and cruelly." But the Ministry is unaware that this sword is a fake; the real sword's location is unknown. When Harry learns that Dumbledore eliminated a Horcrux with the real sword, he wants to search for it to destroy the remaining Horcruxes. Ron, who is wearing the locket at the time, loses his temper that his sister has been punished for helping Harry and his family continues to suffer tragedy. He becomes angry that Harry has no real plan for finding either and leaves. Harry and Hermione go to Godric's Hollow, hoping that Dumbledore hid the sword there. However, they are ambushed by Voldemort and his snake Nagini. During their escape, Hermione accidentally breaks Harry's wand.

One night, an unknown doe Patronus appears near their camp and leads Harry to Gryffindor's real sword. As Harry tries to retrieve the sword from an icy pond, the locket Horcrux tightens around his neck, strangling him. Ron, who suddenly returns, rescues Harry and destroys the Horcrux with the sword. Ron tells his friends that he sought refuge with Bill and Fleur because he could not bear the looks of disappointment from his family, namely Ginny. During his time in the Wizarding world, he learns that saying aloud Voldemort's name is jinxed; a "Taboo" has been created that will break magical enhancements and summon Death Eaters (or "Snatchers") immediately to the person who said the name.

(L to R) Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe, and Rupert Grint star as Hermione, Harry, and Ron respectively)

The Deathly Hallows
The trio go to Xenophilius Lovegood, Luna Lovegood's father, and ask him about a symbol they have encountered several times. He tells them it represents the Deathly Hallows, three legendary objects that conquer death: the Elder Wand, Resurrection Stone, and Invisibility Cloak. Harry is convinced that his Invisibility Cloak is one of the hallows. Xenophilius betrays them to the Ministry in hopes of securing the release of Luna, whom the Death Eaters have taken hostage, but they escape.

"Snatchers" capture the trio after Harry accidentally utters Voldemort's name and activates the Taboo enchantment. They are imprisoned at Malfoy Manor, the new Death Eater headquarters. Finding the sword among the trio's possessions, Bellatrix Lestrange fears they have broken into her vault at Gringrotts. Dobby arrives to free the prisoners, but they are discovered by Peter Pettigrew. Pettigrew repays his life debt to Harry, and is murdered by his own silver hand. In the escape, Harry captures the wands of Bellatrix and Draco Malfoy, but Bellatrix kills Dobby. The trio break into Gringotts, with help from the goblin, Griphook, and retrieve the Cup Horcrux, but lose the sword. They escape on a dragon. Voldemort realises that the Horcruxes are being destroyed, and Harry's mental link to the Dark Lord reveals that one is hidden at Hogwarts.

The Battle of Hogwarts
Dumbledore's brother, Aberforth, helps the trio to enter Hogwarts. They alert the staff to Voldemort's impending arrival. Members of the Order of the Phoenix members arrive as Voldemort's forces attack Hogwarts; Fred Weasley is an early casualty. Harry learns that Ravenclaw's Diadem is a Horcrux and realises it is in the Room of Requirement. Meanwhile, Ron and Hermione enter the Chamber of Secrets and retrieve basilisk fangs, with which Hermione destroys Hufflepuff's Cup. In the Room of Requirement, the three are confronted by Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle. Crabbe mishandles a powerful spell, killing himself and inadvertently destroying the Diadem.

Harry has another vision and goes to the Shrieking Shack. He witnesses Voldemort ordering Nagini to kill Snape. Voldemort believes that Snape became the Elder Wand's master when he killed its former owner, Dumbledore, and that with Snape's death, the wand's allegiance becomes his. Before dying, Snape gives Harry his memories. Using the Pensieve, Harry sees that Snape was always loyal to Dumbledore, motivated by his lifelong love of Lily Evans, Harry's mother. Dumbledore, doomed to die after being cursed by Gaunt's ring, had instructed Snape to kill him, if necessary, to spare Draco the task. Snape sent the doe Patronus to lead Harry to Gryffindor's sword. Harry discovers that he himself is a Horcrux; Voldemort cannot be killed while Harry lives.

Accepting his fate, Harry goes alone to the Forbidden Forest where Voldemort awaits. Harry opens the snitch he received from Dumbledore and finds the Resurrection Stone within. He summons the spirits of James and Lily Potter, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin (recently killed in battle along with his wife, Tonks) who comfort him. He willingly allows Voldemort to strike him with the Avada Kedavra curse. Harry wakes up to a place that reminds him of King's Cross Station, in which Albus Dumbledore appears and explains that, just as Voldemort cannot die while his soul fragment remains in Harry, Harry cannot die while his blood lives in Voldemort's body. Dumbledore also explains that the soul fragment within Harry has been destroyed by the curse. When Harry asks if it's real or in his head, Dumbledore replies that it is in his head, but there's no reason it couldn't still be real.

Harry revives back in the Forbidden Forest, but pretends to be dead. He is carried to Hogwarts as a trophy. As reinforcements charge in, Harry covers himself with the Invisibility Cloak while Neville pulls Gryffindor's sword from the Sorting Hat and beheads Nagini, destroying the final Horcrux. Molly Weasley confronts Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry confronts Voldemort, realising that when Draco Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore, Draco unknowingly became the Elder Wand's master. When Harry later took Draco's own wand, the Elder Wand's allegiance passed to Harry. Voldemort casts Avada Kedavra, but the Elder Wand protects its master and the spell rebounds, killing Voldemort.

Harry hopes to prevent anyone from uniting all three hallows again. He keeps the Invisibility Cloak, but he has left the Resurrection Stone in the Forbidden Forest and he plans to return the Elder Wand to Dumbledore's tomb. As long as Harry remains undefeated, the Elder Wand's power will die with him.



Epilogue
Nineteen years later, Harry and Ginny have three children: James, Albus Severus, and Lily. Ron and Hermione have two children named Rose and Hugo. The families are at King's Cross, where a nervous Albus Severus and Rose are departing for their first year at Hogwarts. James Potter is the oldest and already familiar with school. A 19 year-old Teddy Lupin is found kissing Victoire (presumably Bill and Fleur's daughter) in a train compartment. The children cry in delight that they hope he will marry their cousin and he will "really be part of the family!" Harry comments his godson visits the Potter home four times a week for dinner. They see Draco Malfoy and his unnamed wife with their son Scorpius at the station; Malfoy acknowledges Harry by giving him a curt nod, then turns away. Harry tells Albus Severus, who does not want to be sorted into Slytherin, that Severus Snape, his namesake, was probably the bravest man Harry ever met. Neville is now the Hogwarts Herbology professor and is close friends with Harry. Harry's scar has not hurt "in nineteen years. All was well."

Deaths
This book has the largest number of named casualties of any book in the series. Challenged on this before the book's release, J.K. Rowling had commented "It's not a bloodbath, but it's more than two."[3] In fact, over a dozen characters from earlier books are killed off over the course of the story. In a statement from Harry's point of view, it is said that at least 54 wizards died opposing Voldemort in the Battle of Hogwarts.

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