No One Else Can Have You (No One Else Can Have You, #1) in Mock Printz 2026

Oct 20, 2014 Elmer added it

Shelves: nope, boycott-full-fathom-five

Stalk me, Kathleen. I fucking dare you. I live in Memphis, Tennessee. Stalking reviewers because their review hurt your feelings is NOT okay. And then gloating about it like you're some hero? Fuck that. ...more

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Feb 10, 2014 Diane rated it really liked it

Originally published in BookPage.
The body of a girl, Ruth Fried, is found hanging from a willow tree in the middle of a cornfield. Her body is grotesquely mutilated. The small town of Friendship, Wisconsin, handles this horrific crime like it handles everything else; politely tidy things up and move on. Ruth’s best friend, Kippy Bushman, has lost the one person who could see past the superficial network of politeness endemic to Friendship. When Kippy receives Ruth’s nearly illegible diary, she l ...more

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Feb 21, 2014 Terri rated it liked it

I read "No One Else Can Have You" by Kathleen Hale because it was mentioned in a blog I read as one of the most anticipated Young Adult books of 2014. If one looks through the goodreads reviews on the book, it is abundantly clear that it inspires polarizing opinions. Apparently, you love it or you hate it. I fell in the middle on this one - a promising premise that never manages to get it together.

As I began the book, I got excited because I thought my midwestern high school students would appre I read "No One Else Can Have You" by Kathleen Hale because it was mentioned in a blog I read as one of the most anticipated Young Adult books of 2014. If one looks through the goodreads reviews on the book, it is abundantly clear that it inspires polarizing opinions. Apparently, you love it or you hate it. I fell in the middle on this one - a promising premise that never manages to get it together.

As I began the book, I got excited because I thought my midwestern high school students would appreciate the Fargoesque humor. I thought the opening passage would make a great read aloud in a booktalk until I got to the the last couple of paragraphs. A body hanging from a tree in the middle of a cornfield? A mouth sewn shut? Stuffed with straw? I guess this isn't going to be so funny after all.

Eighteen year old Ruth Fried has been murdered. The night before, she had been on her way to her best friend, Kippy Bushman's, house for a sleepover and never arrived. Kippy is devastated and realizes early on that the boy accused of the murder, Ruth's boyfriend Colt Widdacombe, is innocent. Loathsome though he is, Kippy is not convinced of his guilt, so she sets out to find the real killer. What ensues is meant to be funny, fast-moving, and dark all at once. However, Hale never succeeds at melding all of these elements together seamlessly. She goes too far, especially with the dark, kind of sick aspects of the story that Kippy finds out as she reads Ruth's journal. Because of the language, sex talk, and violence the book is no longer mainstream appropriate - it is definitely for an older reader who appreciates the kind of humor one might find in the work of the Coen Brothers (though the book is not even close to the work of the Coen Brothers in terms of quality).

Friendship, Wisconsin, is filled with many zany characters, most of whom are suspicious. There is the protagonist,Kippy herself, with her strange obsession with Diane Sawyer, her tendency to hug too hard and bite, and her toolbelt. There is Sheriff Staake who has it in for Colt. There is Libby Quinn, a "Grief Gawker" and her proclivity for saying "Oh my Gah." There is Miss Rosa, the "Non-violent Group Communication" leader. "No touching!" And many others. The characters are fun, and creepy, at the same time. Over the top for sure. None of them, except for Kippy, are particularly well-developed.

Lessons about life? Not so much.

For the right reader, this might be an O.K. read. An interesting premise that does not succeed in the end. ...more

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Mar 02, 2014 Sherry Rampey rated it liked it

I really liked that the author tried to create a good mystery. There was a list of suspects, a creepy town, and creepy murders. BUT I figured out who the killer was by Chapter 2! There was really no depth to the characters and the setting was very cliche. I think this will be a good, quick read for those that like mysteries, but I do not think it is Printz worthy.

Read if you like murder mysteries.

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Apr 04, 2014 KJ rated it really liked it

Shelves: adult, high-school, mystery, humor, 2014

Made me laugh and kept me guessing. Murder mysteries (the make-believe kind) can be funny, dontcha know. The grisly prologue (one of the best I've read) could almost stand alone as a horror story with a Twin Peaks vibe, but it is humor that sets this book apart. ...more

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Jul 14, 2014 Erinn rated it really liked it

A really excellent read. Not for everyone, just because of content and occasional gore but I loved the protagonist and it was such a different YA novel than what I used to.

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May 05, 2014 Rebecca rated it really liked it

Shelves: children-ya, mystery, wit, 2014

Fun & funny small town YA mystery (FYI: problematic elements, like most all genre mysteries seem to do). You betcha, this would be a super good movie if Wes Anderson & those Coens teamed up.

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Jun 11, 2014 librarianh20 rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya

Boy howdy with the boatloads of quirk, 4 stars for quirk alone. Kippy Bushman went through a biting and squeezing phase after her mother died when she was a child. After she bites her elementary school teacher in a misguided attempt to save her school from a Lone Gunman during a drill, she is sent off to an anger management group populated by big beefy men. She decides she needs a tough introduction-- " 'I'm a biter,' I shouted. 'And a hugger, and a mayhem maker. Everybody calls me Banzai becaus ...more

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Sep 16, 2014 Alicia rated it it was ok

Shelves: mystery, ya, 2014

What a strange little book. Enjoyed some of the quirky characters but it was a little over the top for my taste. And the slut shaming is a big turn-off for me.

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