TENDRILS

Following the events of Snagged (2026), Leigh meets new enemies while unearthing her mother’s past.

After a recap of the portal fantasy storyline and characters from the first installment, the novel opens with Leigh’s emotional distress over the revelation that love interest Brandish is no Kingdom of Lovely Locks native, but a lying fellow resident of Philadelphia. She’s also worried about the truth regarding her mother, reputed villain Lady Knot, and awaiting their reunion. Her mother’s story of desperation, struggle, and inevitable betrayal (and the besmirching of her good name) by cartoonish villain Duchess Ravenwaves has Leigh ready to storm Ravenwaves’ castle. But it turns out that the duchess is terrified of Lady Knot, fueling more trust issues for Leigh (and setting up fun twists). With the basics of the worldbuilding out of the way, the humor in Leigh’s narration shines, and the emotional stakes—the fate of the people of Lovely Locks and Leigh’s fraught relationships—pack a punch. New antagonists the Judgmental Knights (who live up to their name) provide extra threats and action scenes. The romance is more prominent in this volume but doesn’t go beyond chaste kisses. Harris touches on real-world socio-economic issues, with poverty as a motivating factor for Lady Knot and a source of embarrassment for Leigh. The ending neatly braids the storylines together with a conclusive bow. Leigh is racially ambiguous, with dark hair, “tilted eyes,” and a “dusky complexion.”

A duology closer that improves on the first book.