Some aspects of The Maze – girl gangs, ostracism, swarmings – recall the horrible fatal attack on 14-year-old Reena Virk five years ago in Victoria. Monica Hughes combines a perceptive grasp of the dynamics of adolescent female relationships with a dose of fantasy to resolve a dire fictional situation much less tragically.

Following her parents’ split, Andrea moves to a new neighbourhood and a new school. Her mother seems to have abruptly abandoned her. Her father’s insistence that she look “ladylike” makes her feel like a freak and attracts the unwelcome attentions of a gang led by the sadistic Crystal and her sidekick, Sabrina. Fleeing their bullying, Andrea stumbles upon a strange shop and a tiny black-enamelled box – the “maze” of the title. Soon she, Crystal, and Sabrina are inside it, fighting for their lives through combat trenches, Cretaceous swamps, deserts, and oases. Between skirmishes, Andrea manages to step outside and even keep going to school as well as looking after her demanding father. Crystal and Sabrina, however, are trapped.

A veteran YA writer with more than 32 titles (and the Order of Canada) to her credit, Hughes builds the narrative with her usual flair and precision. The maze is a complex, labyrinthine projection of the girls’ psychological states, and Hughes makes brilliant use of its fantastic imagery and mysterious logic to ratchet up the tension and suspense. Only as the drama winds down and the characters try to resolve their problems in the real world does the tone sometimes seem glib and Oprah-like. But as an alternative to savage violence, that’s not such a bad thing, and young readers will certainly get the point.