The face of Lord Voldemort is tattooed on the leg of Dustin Kohl, 25, of Sunbury.

To the general public, the Harry Potter universe might be returning from a long hiatus with the release of the script for the new London stage play, but for people like Janeen Shaffer and Dustin Kohl, the magic never left.

“I’ve had people tell me it’s over,” Shaffer, 45, said in her Pennsylvania home where she has hundreds of Harry Potter items. “No, it’s not over. It’s continuing, just like Star Wars did.”

“Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” is the official continuation of the seven-part book series written by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany as a stage production. The story takes place 19 years after “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows” ended and follows Harry’s youngest son Albus at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

The play debuts Saturday and the script is being released in book form at midnight Saturday across the nation.

Entertainment Weekly reports the script book has already topped best sellers lists on Amazon and Barnes & Nobles, and it is the most pre-ordered book for Barnes & Nobles since “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” in 2007. The last novel sold 11 million copies within 24 hours of its release: 2.7 million copies in the UK and 8.3 million in the US.

Shaffer’s house is filled with Harry Potter memorabilia. She has all seven books in the British and American version, all eight movies, the audio books, unauthorized books, a bed set and pillows, clothing, hats, socks, pins, snow globes, posters, figurines, toys, jewelry, wallets, purses, cardboard cutouts and countless other items. She even has her own 18-person home theater with a projector and big screen to watch the films whenever she wants.

“It just clicked for me,” she said. “I don’t get tired of it. It’s a lot of fun for me.”

She shares her love of the series with her 13-year-old daughter, Emily, who found her love of reading from the Harry Potter series.

Dustin Kohl, 25, of Sunbury, Pennsylvania, has three Harry Potter tattoos on his legs: a Deathly Hallow symbol, a broken key from the first book and the face of villain Lord Voldemort. He owns all the books and movies, wands from the Universal Studios park, posters and other pieces of memorabilia.

“It felt like home when a new book came out,” Kohl said. “You went out to midnight parties and people were excited with you. It takes you to a new world.” 

Shaffer said she will be at the mall to pick her pre-ordered copy of the new story, but Kohl said he will be out first thing Sunday morning to find his copy.

“I’m super excited,” Kohl said. “She (J.K. Rowling) is letting us know what’s going on after the last book. This is bringing everyone back to their childhood. The magic is definitely still there.”

Strawser writes for the Sunbury, Pennsylvania Daily Item.