I agree that return from death should not be employed lightly. It's been way overused in comics, in soap operas, in D&D, and elsewhere. On the otherhand, if his death has been faked in order to serve the purposes of the plot, then I can better accept that. So why are we told that Dumbledore's new portrait in the Headmaster's office is sleeping? Is that because it takes some time for the magic to work, because there hadn't been a funeral yet, or because he isn't actually dead?

I think that Snape is one of the most interesting characters in the series and would love to hear more about his motives. I have been being annoyed at Harry's obsessive hatred of Snape in the last few books, as being unjustified.