Finally at the end of the thread! A few observations on HBP:
The infamous chapter 2: I know that while I was reading, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop - when Snape agreed to the third part of the Unbreakable Vow (completing the task if Draco couldn't), that seemed to me to go beyond undercover, although I guess at that point, he had to go through with it. At the end of the book, I kept waiting for the reversal that never came. I find the theories for a possible Snape reversal in Book 7 to be plausible, but I also feel that they are resting on rather thin ground at the moment.
On DD: I'm in the camp that dead is dead - this ain't no comic book. We won't see Dumbledore alive in Book 7. I do believe that we will see him in Pensieve flashbacks, but remember, it has now been shown that Pensieve memories can be altered (Slughorn altered his inexpertly, but it could be specualted that given enough time, false memories could be planted. Just something to keep in mind if a Pensieve flashback doesn't fit.)
Other comments: As soon as I heard that there was a major death in the book, I knew Dumbledore was doomed. I've been expecting it for sometime; all part of the hero's quest and all.
The creepiest thought in the book is wondering what Tom Riddle did to the other kids in the cave when he was younger - that boy was bad from the start.
My favorite part of the book was when Harry came back to the Griffyndor common room after serving his detention, expecting to hear that they got creamed in the Quidditch match, only to find out they won big with Ginny as Seeker, as she came up to hug him and he finally kissed her. I am such a big sap.
What is it about fandom that makes people loony? The entitlement that some people feel for their 'ship is unbeleivable.