YA novel about a girl who goes into a sort of fantasy desert place

[Matty]

i just remembered i read this and now would be thrilled to find it again. vibes were impeccable. i read this sometime in i think 2017 or 18? i have very few plot details unfortunately but i remember a desert, a very tall tower, a small companion who could maybe fly and had a strange name, the girl was very clever and tricky, and i think she left behind one of her friends. it had something to do with keys and locks. i think the cover was sort of like a lemony snicket or pseudonymous bosch style, and it had a bridge or a lighthouse or both.

[SBC]

Maybe Wolf Tower or one of its sequels, by Tanith Lee? Robin McKinley also has a few desert stories, including short fiction that could be worth checking.

[Matty]

SBC wrote: "Maybe Wolf Tower or one of its sequels, by Tanith Lee? Robin McKinley also has a few desert stories, including short fiction that could be worth checking."

That sounds familiar! I'll check it out and see, thanks :)