Will Harry Potter die? That's the moot question on the lips of millions of Potter fans who are eagerly awaiting the release of the seventh and final book in the Potter series, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows."
JK Rowling had earlier announced that the last book would see the death of two main characters. Explaining her decision, Rowling said, "We are dealing with pure evil here. They don't target extras do they? They go for the main characters. Well, I do."
The rumor got its first push when Rowling, speaking in a gathering in New York, said, "I understand why an author would kill a character from the point of view of not allowing others to continue writing after the original author is dead."
She had added that she felt liberated after making the decision. "On the one hand, I am going to feel sad. Harry's been an enormous part of my life and it's been a turbulent phase of my life and he was always the constant."
Now British bookmaker William Hill have opened up their books taking bets on Harry dying in the last book.
Says Rupert Adams, a William Hill spokesperson, "JK mentioned that Harry might be killed off and the general consensus seems to be that Harry is the final Horcrux and to ensure that Voldemort dies he will need to be sacrificed. Most of the early money has been for Harry, who has been cut from 10-1 to 6-1 and Voldemort remains the odds-on favorite (at 4-5)".
The bookmaker however added that they would be returning all the money in case Harry is not killed in the last book.
