There was a definite improvement between this and the first book, which makes me look forward to the third. As well as others who have read this, I have been promised that it continues to improve and really gets going by book 4. I like that it acknowledged how slow Harry can be to arrive at obvious conclusions. Which means the author doesn't think I (the reader) am an idiot needing things explained to me, that's just the character. And also that it left me with questions to be answered in the next books. (Like what was that last mysterious source he found?)