This book just flew by even though it's over 800 pages! The Key really did a good job at wrapping up this adictive trilogy of modern witches in Sweden. I could not put it down. My only issue is that some characters really got on my nerves at times and some parts could be a bit slow when compared to the rest of the book. Besides all of that, I found The Key to be enjoyable and would definitely recommend if you're looking for some Paranormal/Urban Fantasy with tons of fun and diversity!

Nyckeln är en underbar uppföljer till Cirkeln även om man bara läser för att få ett ordentligt avslut. En massa nya karaktärer kommer och boken är väldigt lång vilket både kan vara en fördel och en nackdel.
Jag älskar långa böcker och jag älskar denna serie vilket gjorde det enkelt för mig att läsa även om man gav upp hoppet om allting till slut. Dock så är detta en typisk bok med ett happy ending vilket gör att man alltid vet att det kommer lösa sig (speciellt om man "råkar" läsa i förväg bara för att försäkra sig).
Den var inte lika bra som Cirkeln och vissa saker känns så överflödigt att det kunde tagits bort ändå tycker jag att detta passar som en avslutningsbok, en passionerad läser kommer igenom även fast flera lösa trådar inte knyts ihop.

4.25

This was an excellent book. It was excellent for all the reasons Fire was excellent: Strandberg and Elfgren are, simply, damn good at writing about people. Yes, the end of the world is approaching, and that is the plot that forms the background of this novel. But the plot background could have been after the apocalypse or about horses or anything else, because the draw of this novel is the characters. The Key involves betrayal and mistrust and anger, and love and secrets and truth and family and discovery and through it all these strong characters. I love Minoo, and her law abiding ways hurt her here. She becomes scary and scared and so much more human. I love Anna-Karin. She's afraid, and still vulnerable, but she's growing in confidence and trusting her power through her heartbreak. I love Vanessa, and her fears and her joy and her surprise, and how much she cares for her family and Linnea. She's so cool, and she doesn't abandon her non Circle friends, and I liked that. I love Linnea and her fear of getting to close and knowing to much coupled with her desperate desire for intimacy. I love how all these girls related to each other, especially Linnea and Vanessa. I love Viktor and Clara and their relationship. Sigrid was so well written. Walter was absolutely terrifying. I loved how family features in this book: Minoo's parents are back and Anna-Karin is on her own but she does have a dad and grandfather and Ida is afraid but trying to help and Elias has dead parents and Vanessa's family is lovely and Linnea's dad is trying to be different. I just loved this story. It means so much. The plot is this complex web of relationships and the people colliding and loving and existing within them. Read this book because you need resolution, and you love the characters and want to get to know new ones. The action never stops, and it's far from boring, and that's why I loved it.

A fantastic ending for a great trilogy. The writing, the plot, and the characters all got stronger with each book, resulting in a story that I never wanted to end. Was this book perfect? No, not really. It started of slow, it was probably longer than necessary, and there were unecessary moments here and there, but I was so involved in the plot and the girls's lives that I didn't mind. So I'm giving it all 5 stars and know that I'll carry the characters with me for a long time.

The stakes were definitely higher in this book. With the apocalypse right around the corner, every little decision was important, alliances had to be formed, and the girls' friendship and lives in general had their ups and downs.

This book was much darker and the girls had to confront a lot of hardships, like loss, manipulation, power, and abusers. All of this with the end of the world looming. They all made mistakes or made tough decisions, but I always understood their motivations, even if I didn't always agree with them. I especially appreciated the fall outs between the girls, as it brought a new depth to their friendship and individual personalities.

"Her words wound and crush, and cause more pain than most because there's always some truth in what she says."

In this novel, there's a point of view from the Borderlands, which is a sort of misty limbo filled with glimpses of moments in time. I thought it was used pretty well to fast forward some events, though the book still ended up being really long. I'm not really complaining about it, but the first 200 pages 0r so dragged for me. After that, it started to pick up and then the plot moved faster and faster. By the time I finished, I wanted to keep reading and reading about this world and characters.

"Bravery without common sense never helped anyone."

As with the other books, there was a bit of mystery. I loved that we don't have all the information so we never know which alliances are going to work. It kept me guessing and I couldn't really figure out what was going to happen, even though I had my suspicions.

In the end, this series surprised me. Not only did the plot go places I wasn't expecting and explored themes I never thought it would, but the characters were also beautifully developed. The writing got better with each book and it definitely ended on a high note. These books are long, they take their time to tell you each girl's story and carefully lay out the plot, so it might not be for fast-pace lovers. But if you like urban fantasy with witches, the apocalypse, and friendship in the mix, give this trilogy a go.

Två år efter att den blodröda månen som startade De Utvaldas kamp mot apokalypsen är gruppen nere på fyra medlemmar: Anna-Karin, Minoo, Vanessa, och Linnéa. Mycket har hänt och mycket kommer fortfarande att hända... Mer död och framför allt kaos.

Tja, vad kan jag säga? Jag är flera år sen med att till slut ha läst den här trilogin, så det mest har redan sagts. Verkar vara en del blandade känslor gällande slutet men jag tillhör helt klart lägret som gillar slutet. Alla frågor blev besvarade och det blev varken för mycket dystopi eller utopi av det hela. Väldigt mänskligt. Helt klart nöjd. Läsvärt, men det vet nog de flesta redan.

Nyckeln har varit något så himla stort. Efter Eld var det som att få komma tillbaka till Cirkeln, allt jag tyckte om med början av serien, men ändå se karaktärerna utvecklas och handlingen komma framåt. Serien gick så mycket upp och ner men slutet var värt det.