Queen of the Warrior Bees by Jean Gill

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44641405-queen-of-the-warrior-bees" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Queen of the Warrior Bees (Natural Forces #1)" src="https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553704477i/44641405._SX98_.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44641405-queen-of-the-warrior-bees">Queen of the Warrior Bees</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4619468.Jean_Gill">Jean Gill</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2871164425">4 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
This very original book focuses on Mielitta, an eighteen year old girl long past the age of her maturity test, but never accepted and still considered a child. Her friends have all become adults in the ceremony and now ignore her. In a society based on conformity and perfection, she is considered a freak. "The Forest", which is anything outside the community's protective, sterile bubble, is considered evil and brings on allergy, killing many people. Mielitta overhears a password to the door that leads outside and discovers that the forest isn't evil and may actually be the savior of her people. With the power of her bee colony, she must convince the mages that outside isn't the enemy, their idea of perfection is.<br />This book was a little hard to get into, especially the bee politics when she becomes their queen for awhile, but overall I liked the story. The underlying story was a bit like the Handmaid's Tale with the overpowering of female mages, sexual harassment, and "forging" to the mindset of the community through brainwashing during the maturity ceremony. A very good lesson for young adults to be independent and unique and to think and make decisions for themselves.
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The Escape Manual for Introverts by Katie Vaz

This manual gives introverts excuses and escape plans to use in awkward social gatherings and interactions. From the more plausible excuses for friends and family members to the more creative and ridiculous for acquaintances and strangers, this book has it all!
I love this little field guide for social awkwardness! I've used several of these ingenious ideas myself and even created some of my own that weren't listed. This would make an excellent gift for the novice introvert, but beware...you may never see them again!

The Disappearance of Alistair Ainsworth by Leonard Goldberg

A good old-fashioned whodunit featuring Sherlock Holmes daughter, Joanna, Dr Watson, and his son. Alistair Ainsworth is a cryptographer in possession of many British war secrets. It is discovered that he's been kidnapped and the race is on to find him before the Germans break him. Joanna uses the investigative skills inherited from her father to track the clues and solve the case.
I probably would have enjoyed this book more if I'd read the previous two novels in the series. I had a hard time connecting with the characters. They just seemed flat with no personality. This one was just ok for me.