What is the importance of the woods in the novel, Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen?

The Woods surrounds the castle, separating it from the rest of the land. When the Queen first arrives, she regularly takes Snow White on picnics in the woods and it represents a lovely, happy place for the girl. When the three cousins take Snow White into the woods, it suddenly becomes a dark, frightening place that Snow White dreads.