Now a discussion that can generate a lot of controversy. The topic of today is “is the romance between Hermione and Ron good writing?”
First the positive view, yes the romance between these two main characters can be considered good writing since it mirrors the romance between Ginny and Harry. So the romance is “technically good.”1
However there is enough to be said for considering the relationship between Hermione and Ron to be bad. Importantly consider Harry potter and the half-blood prince which features a scene in which Harry reveals that he used a mindtrick on Ron to make him believe that he would have luck in his quidditch match.
Afterwards Hermione keeps pestering Harry about his foul play (“felix fortunis” is forbidden for academia and sports) and Harry shows he merely pretended to “poison” Ron.
The expected reaction would be that Ron would gain a confidence boost since he now knows he can win high-pressure matches without illegal aid.
Ron however chooses to bully Hermione instead, showing his childness and showing that he should never be a romantic match for Hermione.
To go back to the “yay” camp this is the book in which Dumbledore is assassinated, so to be fair the impious behaviour of Ron towards Hermione can be considered signposting with regards to more important plot points.
This is indeed the book in which the romance between Hermione and Ron comes to the fore, and it might be not wholly unexpected considering the events that played out at the previous book.2
The question of whether they “work together” remains a point of contention. This study has highlighted some of the factors which can be considered in favour of their chemistry and some factors arguing against.