No One Else Can Have You by Kathleen Hale

Friendship, Wisconsin - population 689 688 - has never seen a murder as brutal as that of Ruth Fried. The eighteen-year-old was found in a cornfield, hanging like a scarecrow, and stuffed with straw. She'd been on her way to visit her best friend, Kippy Bushman, when it happened and now the town's at wit's end to find her killer. Ruth's mother has passed along her journal in hopes that Kippy can clean it up for her, but Kippy soon finds that Ruth was... hiding things. Then Ruth's boyfriend is arrested for her murder, but Kippy is convinced the cops have another agenda. The evidence isn't stacking up and it seems no one but her is interested in tracking down the real killer. With Ruth's journal as a guide and a little help from Ruth's recently returned brother, Kippy sets out to unmask the real killer before it's too late.

Readers, I'm finally on the mend, but I was sick a ridiculously long time. Thanks to that, I spent a LOT of time in bed reading. Fortunately I had a stack of fun stuff to choose from and Kathleen Hale's book is going down as my first favorite of 2014 :)

I was tempted to say this book was super CUTE but I think that gives just a bit more insight into my twisted reading taste than the actual content of the book. No One Else Can Have You is quirky and dark. It's a teen mystery a bit a la Fargo, don'tcha know.

In terms of content this book is definitely not cute. Not only does it begin with a brutal murder, but there are characters dealing with a whole host of issues. It's Hale's style, though that makes this book much lighter than one would expect. She brings a levity to the story that makes it fun in a dark and twisted way. The small town small mindedness typical to this kind of story comes across believably rather than ridiculous or stereotypical with Hale's particular style and Kippy is an extremely likable lead.

Overall, No One Else Can Have You is a darkly comedic mystery and a definite not-to-be-missed debut of 2014. Highly, highly, highly and enthusiastically recommended!