If you've collected any of the Harry Potter books illustrated by Jim Kay over the years, you've likely experienced the pain of an unfinished collection. The last book to get the illustrated treatment was Order of the Phoenix, which was released all the way back in 2022. Jim Kay stepped down from the project shortly after that book was released, and as someone who has slowly been buying up these books for my brother over the years, I was afraid that I'd never actually be able to finish building his collection.
Thankfully, just last year the publisher announced that Levi Pinfold would be taking up the project and finally finish up the illustrated series. According to new product listings, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: The Illustrated Edition is now officially set to release on October 6, 2026. A cover has yet to be revealed, but you can already get your preorder in at any of the major online bookstores.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: The Illustrated Edition
One of the things that made Jim Kay's illustrated editions so successful was just how well he captured the magic of the Harry Potter series. So one of the biggest questions is whether or not Levi Pinfold will be able to match what Kay was able to achieve over five books. Although we don't yet have a cover for the upcoming book, Bloomsbury did release a preview image of Pinfold's work back in March 2025. Based on this alone, it looks like he will have a slightly darker style than we got from Jim Kay's work. Considering Half-Blood Prince is where the series starts to get a lot darker in general, I actually think this transition could end up feeling somewhat natural.
The current $55 price tag is a bit too steep for me, but it's likely that it will get discounted as we get closer to the release date. Amazon offers a preorder price guarantee that ensures you pay the lowest price it drops to before it releases, even if you preorder at the current price. All of the other books in the series are currently about half that price right now, though.
Jim Kay Editions
If you're just now looking to start your Harry Potter Illustrated collection, I'd suggest waiting for some sort of sale. The best time to buy books in general is when Amazon has some sort of "3 for 2" sale, which usually includes most if not all of the Jim Kay illustrated editions. You can usually expect to see these promotions close to major sales events like Prime Day or Black Friday, but they're a great chance to save a ton of money on a full collection.
