Holly
Interesting premise. (Makes me wish I would have thought of it.) Loads of potential. I'm hoping the character development will mature in the following book(s). Definitely willing to give the second book in the series a shot.
An engaging read, but Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm comes in a distant second compared to Anne of Green Gables. As I was reading, there were numerous occassions I encountered distinct simlarities between the two characters. In each case I favored Anne over Rebecca.
One of the reasons I found myself preferring Anne is a result of her friendship with Diana vs. Rebecca's friendship with Emma Jane. When the Rebecca character became “bosom friends” with Emma Jane it wasn't out of any real wish to, but rather there weren't any other more appealing options. Wiggins seemed so in love with her character, that everyone else fell short. There was an obvious superiority. As a result I interpreted the character of Rebecca as condescending. She just isn't as loveable, or as fallible, as Anne.
To be fair, it's been several years since I've read Anne of Green Gables. I'm in the process of re-reading it so I can do a better comparison of the two books instead of going strictly from memory.
