As is typical in many of Mahy's works, the novel is rich and complex literarily, inviting the reader into a challenging experience. Mahy is particularly successful in her depiction of young female protagonists who are faced with upheaval in their lives and who must cope with their challenges with imagination and sensitivity. Dangerous Spaces offers two such characters in the two cousins, the romantic and dreamy Anthea and the energetic and bold Flora.

The two are initially opposites both physically and temperamentally. Anthea is the golden-haired princess, the rich and romantic orphan from the perfect home. Flora is the mousy, freckled farm girl who resents the encroachment of her cousin on what she sees as her space—her home and family. Flora envies Anthea's romantic persona, her golden, flowing hair, her pin-tucked nightdress, her reluctance to offer to help with farm chores, her...