Every Harry Potter Book Ranked From Worst To Best

6. The Order Of The Phoenix

Following on from the dramatic reveal at the end of The Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix is the first instalment in what's effectively a final trilogy (with Goblet serving as a bridge between the first three and last three).

Following a three-year wait, it was lapped up at the time, and it does have a lot going for it. The use of spells in this book really is magical, especially with the training undertaken by Dumbledore's Army. As Potter moves into older territory, it nicely deepens the relationship between Harry and Sirius, while the scene at St Mungo's with Neville and his parents is tragic (and even more tragic is that the film cut it out). It gave us the series' most frightening villain, Dolores Umbridge, some great new adult characters in Kingsley and Tonks, and one of the weirdest, most endearing, and very best children of the series in Luna Lovegood.

There's also the triumphant arrival of the Order in the Department of Mysteries, heralding a major good vs evil clash. All that is excellent, but OotP has some huge downsides too.

This is the book of Angry Harry, and that's a difficult character to follow. He's confused, he's sullen, and he's frustratingly not caught up on the real game being played, which puts everyone in danger and ultimately leads to the all-too-soon death of Sirius. His angst is understandable to a degree, but through almost 800 pages it becomes too much, while that length also means the book is lacking direction for large parts.