"Wow." That was the one word I could get out after finishing and finally closing the covers of the massive and long-awaited "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." It was everything I've been eagerly waiting for and *more*, and not just because of its hefty 734-page length. I *won't* summarize the plot here in my review--there are just too many delights, shocks, and surprises that you should discover yourself. This is by far the most involved, detailed, and most of all *dark* Harry Potter novel--Harry's life becomes far more complicated, with friendship problems, romantic difficulties, and far more deadly threats to his life and happiness than ever before. But don't be put off: there's as much of the usual fun, silliness, and delight to J.K. Rowling's wonderful writing that definitely had me laughing out loud even in some of the darker moments. Rowling has planned the general structure of her entire seven-book saga beforehand, and it shows in the care and attention to details that pick up plotlines and characters from previous books (Tom Riddle, Dobby the House-Elf, Sirius Black) and take them in dramatic and exciting directions, as well as adding innovative twists and startling new characters ranging from the frightening to the humorous. As great as the first books were, Book Four is more mature, more involved, and more personal. She has, with this book, taken the Harry Potter saga halfway through its full seven-volume story, and I found myself thinking of another favorite saga: conceived as a single structure but broken into parts that captured the imaginations and hearts of kids and adults around the world: The "Star Wars" movies. And what is generally considered the best of all the Star Wars movies?--the *middle* one, "The Empire Strikes Back." On the 20th anniversary of that, my favorite Star Wars movie, I sat and read the new Harry Potter, halfway through Harry's saga, and was amazed at how much it reminded me of "Empire," not specifically in plot but rather in theme. At the end of both "Harry IV" and "Empire," the villain has shown himself to be more powerful than imagined, our heroes have suffered a serious blow, and dark, dark times are coming. We know they'll triumph...but half the fun is accompanying them on their adventures. We know how it all worked out for Luke Skywalker...and I can't wait to see how it will come out for Harry Potter. I'm already counting the days until Book Five, but in the meantime I think I'll read Books One through Four all over again. Harry Potter is not likely to look back on his fourth year at Hogwart's with much fondness...but I, and his millions of fans, *will*.