Sunday, October 19, 2025

Recent Reads - October 2025


Recent Reads

Nothing like a good book on a rainy Autumn day!
This year - since I turned 70 - I made my Goodreads goal for the year to 70 books.  For some, that is a big number...for others, not so much.  Since I also enjoy watching movies, cooking, baking, and travel it seemed like a good goal for me.  As of today I am at 58 books!  Here are some I have enjoyed in the last few months...

I really enjoy the way this author writes and gave this book a 4 star review.
Emmeline lives an enchanted childhood on a remote island with her father, who teaches her about the natural world through her senses. What he won’t explain are the mysterious scents stored in the drawers that line the walls of their cabin, or the origin of the machine that creates them. As Emmeline grows, however, so too does her curiosity, until one day the unforeseen happens, and Emmeline is vaulted out into the real world—a place of love, betrayal, ambition, and revenge. To understand her past, Emmeline must unlock the clues to her identity, a quest that challenges the limits of her heart and imagination.
Lyrical and immersive, The Scent Keeper explores the provocative beauty of scent, the way it can reveal hidden truths, lead us to the person we seek, and even help us find our way back home.

I gave this 3 stars...it was not my style of writing and I had to keep myself reading to finish it.  I liked that Central Park was a character in the book.
For fifty years Abe and Jane have been coming to Central Park, as starry-eyed young lovers, as frustrated and exhausted parents, as artists watching their careers take flight. They came alone when they needed to get away from each other, and together when they had something important to discuss. The Park has been their witness for half a century of love. Until now.
Jane is dying, and Abe is recounting their life together as a way of keeping them going: the parts they knew—their courtship and early marriage, their blossoming creative lives—and the parts they didn’t always want to know—the determined young student of Abe’s looking for a love story of her own, and their son, Max, who believes his mother chose art over parenthood and who has avoided love and intimacy at all costs. Told in various points of view, even in conversation with Central Park itself, these voices weave in and out to paint a portrait as complicated and essential as love itself.

This was a great read...I gave it 4 stars for the 1970's vibe and references - and for the great story.
Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.
As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.


Big 4 stars here... I am a huge Hunger Games fan and enjoyed so many great activities with Middle School students surrounding this series in the years before I retired. Loved the back story of Haymitch and Effie...
As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.
Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.
When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.


3 stars... I wanted to like this as I enjoy Anne Tyler, but it did not seem great to me.
Gail Baines is having a bad day. To start, she loses her job—or quits, depending on whom you ask. Tomorrow her daughter, Debbie, is getting married, and she hasn’t even been invited to the spa day organized by the mother of the groom. Then, Gail’s ex-husband, Max, arrives unannounced on her doorstep, carrying a cat, without a place to stay, and without even a suit.
But the true crisis lands when Debbie shares with her parents a secret she has just learned about her husband to be. It will not only throw the wedding into question but also stir up Gail and Max’s past.

Once I read one of this author's books I was on a quest to read everything she wrote...4 stars.
At an intimate, festive dinner party in Seattle, six women gather to celebrate their friend Kate's recovery from cancer. Wineglass in hand, Kate strikes a bargain with them. To celebrate her new lease on life, she'll do the one thing that's always terrified her: white-water rafting down the Grand Canyon. But if she goes, each of them must promise to do one thing in the next year that is new, or difficult, or scary—and Kate gets to choose their challenges.
Shimmering with warmth, wit, and insight, Joy for Beginners is a celebration of life: unexpected, lyrical, and deeply satisfying.

5 stars!  Well, the cover and title drew me in...and I am certainly NOT a quiet librarian.  This was a good mystery and I learned a lot about the tragic times in Bosnia.
Hana Babic is a quiet, middle-aged librarian in Minnesota who wants nothing more than to be left alone. But when a detective arrives with the news that her best friend has been murdered, Hana knows that something evil has come for her, a dark remnant of the past she and her friend had shared.
Thirty years before, Hana was someone else: Nura Divjak, a teenager growing up in the mountains of war-torn Bosnia—until Serbian soldiers arrived to slaughter her entire family before her eyes. The events of that day thrust Nura into the war, leading her to join a band of militia fighters, where she became not only a fierce warrior but a legend—the deadly Night Mora. But a shattering final act forced Nura to flee to the United States with a bounty on her head.
Now, someone is hunting Hana, and her friend has paid the price, leaving her eight-year-old grandson in Hana’s care. To protect the child without revealing her secret, Hana must again become the Night Mora—and hope she can find the killer before the past comes for them, too.


4 stars...another great read by this author!
In this luminous sequel, return to the enchanting world of the national bestseller The School of Essential Ingredients
Lillian and her restaurant have a way of drawing people together. There’s Al, the accountant who finds meaning in numbers and ritual; Chloe, a budding chef who hasn’t learned to trust after heartbreak; Finnegan, quiet and steady as a tree, who can disappear into the background despite his massive height; Louise, Al’s wife, whose anger simmers just below the boiling point; and Isabelle, whose memories are slowly slipping from her grasp. And there’s Lillian herself, whose life has taken a turn she didn’t expect. . . .
Their lives collide and mix with those around them, sometimes joining in effortless connections, at other times sifting together and separating again, creating a family that is chosen, not given. A beautifully imagined novel about the ties that bind—and links that break—The Lost Art of Mixing is a captivating meditation on the power of love, food, and companionship.


A 5 star nonfiction title...fabulous stories of how booksellers and librarians share the love of reading.  I bought this book at Shakespeare and Company in Paris 
last year and it took a little time for it to come to the top of my "to be read pile".  Loved it!
Booksellers and librarians are superheroes, saving lives every single day. Here are their amazing, inspiring true stories as told to the greatest storyteller of our time, James Patterson.
To be a bookseller or librarian…
You have to play detective.
Be a treasure hunter. A matchmaker. An advocate. A visionary.
A person who creates "book joy" by pulling a book from a shelf, handing it to someone and saying, "You've got to read this. You're going to love it."
Step inside The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians and enter a world where you can feed your curiosities, discover new voices, find whatever you want or require. This place has the magic of rainbows and unicorns, but it's also a business. The book business.
Meet the smart and talented people who live between the pages—and who can't wait to help you find your next favorite book.


I so enjoyed her other book - The Measure - and was excited to read this one.  4 stars!
Welcome to the Poppy Fields, where there’s hope for even the most battered hearts to heal.
Here, in a remote stretch of the California desert, lies an experimental and controversial treatment center that allows those suffering from the heartache of loss to sleep through their pain...and keep on sleeping. After patients awaken from this prolonged state of slumber, they will finally be healed. But only if they’re willing to accept the potential shadowy side effects.
On a journey to this mystical destination are four very different strangers and one little dog: Ava, a book illustrator; Ray, a fireman; Sasha, an occupational therapist; Sky, a free spirit; and a friendly pup named PJ. As they attempt to make their way from the Midwest all the way west to the Poppy Fields—where they hope to find Ellis, its brilliant, enigmatic founder—each of their past secrets and mysterious motivations threaten to derail their voyage.
A high-concept speculative novel about heartache, hope, and human resilience, The Poppy Fields explores the path of grief and healing, a journey at once profoundly universal and unique to every person, posing the questions: How do we heal in the wake of great loss? And how far are we willing to go in order to be healed?

I love Nora Roberts books...mystery, romance, fantasy...she really writes some great stories.  I loved staying at the Inn she created in Boonsboro, MD - you can read about our visit to the Inn here
This was a very good mystery...and had a very creepy feel to it.  Kept me reading quickly to the end - 5 stars!

Natural Resources police officer, Sloan Cooper, and her partner had just taken down three men preying on hikers in the Western Maryland mountains. Driving back, she pulled in at a convenience store—and walked right into a robbery in progress. One gunshot from a jittery thief was about to change her world.
After being shocked back to life on the operating table, she has a long recovery ahead, so she moves back to her parents’ peaceful house in Heron’s Rest. As for the boyfriend who dumped her via text while she was in the hospital, good riddance.
She may be down, but she’s not out. So when a woman vanishes, leaving her car behind in a supermarket parking lot, Sloan searches online for similar cases. She finds them, spread across three states. Men and women, old and young—the missing seem to have nothing in common. And the abductions keep happening.
Luckily, the new man in her life shares her passion for solving this mystery. But it will take every ounce of endurance to get to the dark heart of this bizarre case—and she's willing to risk her life again if that's what it takes to stop the horror.


So...we returned to Inn Boonsboro this summer  - this time we stayed in the Jane and Rochester room ( every room is named and decorated after a famous literary couple ) and at the evening wine and cheese time we met two women who also enjoy Nora Roberts books and they were raving about the In Death series that Nora writes under the name of J.D. Robb.   As much as I enjoy Nora's books I had never read any of the J.D. Robb titles.  They are set in a future time, and I was not sure I would enjoy that. They were aghast - and we kept talking about our favorite titles so long that the Innkeeper had to bring out another bottle of wine!  They convinced me I needed to read the In Death series.  So, we stopped at the bookstore in town - 
where you can find lots of books and LOTS of Nora Roberts titles.  I picked up this book and was hooked!  But...this first book was published in 1995 and there are 36 in the series!  I don't know if I can ever catch up....but I am going to try! 4 stars for this one!
Here is the novel that started it all- the first book in J.D. Robb's number-one New York Times-bestselling In Death series, featuring New York homicide detective Lieutenant Eve Dallas and Roarke.
It is the year 2058, and technology now completely rules the world. But New York City Detective Eve Dallas knows that the irresistible impulses of the human heart are still ruled by just one thing: passion.
When a senator's daughter is killed, the secret life of prostitution she'd been leading is revealed. The high-profile case takes Lieutenant Eve Dallas into the rarefied circles of Washington politics and society. Further complicating matters is Eve's growing attraction to Roarke, who is one of the wealthiest and most influential men on the planet, devilishly handsome... and the leading suspect in the investigation.


Historical fiction is my jam...and this one did not disappoint.  
I gave it 4 stars.
Sweeping across two generations, from the ghettos of Europe during the Second World War to the enclaves of New York's Fifth Avenue, The Hidden Girl traces the life of Leah Thompson, who rises from humble beginnings in rural Yorkshire to take the modelling world by storm. But her fateful association with the Delancey family dominates her life. The secrets they hide from one another start to explode into nightmares of thwarted ambition, forbidden love, revenge and murder . . . culminating in a fatal, forgotten prophecy from the past.

Have you read any of these titles?  What did you think ?  And what are you reading now?  Do you track your books and set a goal for reading each year?  I use Goodreads and like it - but I see there are a lot of book tracking devices online.  I love logging in my books for a few reasons.  First, if I pick up a book and I am not sure if I read it already I can check.  Second...I love having a list of everything I read to refer back to  - I am still trying to remember the author and title of a book I read in High School and another from a library I worked in early in my career.  I can remember the story, even some lines from the book, but not the author or title.  Tried all kinds of searches using the plot but never got an answer.  So, Goodreads works for me.
Thanks so much for stopping by Our New Vista today.  Leave a comment below because I love hearing from you!  Now...back to my books!

Sunday, October 12, 2025

That Famous Pasta

 


That Famous Pasta

I am very late to the game in making this pasta dish that seems to be all over Tik Tok and Instagram.  My sister visited last Sunday and I thought it was the perfect time to try the recipe as I had just picked up the cheese at Costco - and had the tomatoes on hand, as well as a box of whole wheat pasta in the pantry.  I am SO glad I finally tried this dish - we loved it!
I found the version I made on The Recipe Well - here is the link to that site.
I did not follow the recipe exactly - and I think that is the beauty of this dish, you can change some things around and it still works great.

Ingredients:

  • 1 5.3 ounce package of garlic and herbs Boursin cheese
  • 2 pints cherry tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onions
  • 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon  kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 8 oz. bow tie noodles ( fusilli or rotini work well, too)
  • 1/4 cup thinly sliced basil leaves
  • Optional garnish: grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a 13x9 ceramic dish, place the cheese in the middle of the dish, then surround it with the cherry tomatoes, onion, and garlic.
I did not have red onions on hand, so I used what I had...

and was happy to use my Fall Leaves Temptations 13x9 pan.


I used the minced garlic in a jar.

Olive oil


After adding the salt and pepper - then use your hands to gently coat the tomatoes and in the oil and seasonings.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes...or until the tomatoes start to burst.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta...I used penne because that was what I had in the pantry. Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water for later.
When it comes out of the oven it looks like this...stir it all together and gently smash the tomatoes.

I did not have any basil, and I did not add any extra cheese.
Add the cooked pasta and then slowly add water to get it to the way you want it.
You can add chicken breast in the dish and cook it a bit longer - checking the temp of the chicken to make sure it is cooked to proper temperature.  It was a nice day so we ate on the screened patio and I put some chicken breasts on the grill to serve with the pasta.



I served it with some rustic bread and I had a glass of white wine with it.  It was DELICIOUS!
I would definitely make this dish again.  There was plenty of leftover pasta...I heated it up in the microwave ( added a little water to make it more saucy ) and served it with grilled shrimp mixed in.  Again, it was wonderful.
While waiting for the dish to bake we watched the Eagles lose :-(
and enjoyed some snacks.
It was a great day!

So...have you seen this dish on one of the social media platforms - and have you tried it ?  Any variations?  What did you think ?  Please leave a comment below and let me know.  I really love hearing from you!
Hope you have a wonderful week and are enjoying a fabulous October!

“I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”

― L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables

Sunday, September 28, 2025

Time for Apple Bread

 


Time for Apple Bread

Even though the temps here in Lancaster go into the 80's in the afternoons, I am ready for Fall and cozy foods.  This apple bread recipe is super easy, freezes well, and tastes like Autumn.
I found this recipe years ago in a cookbook that I found in the school library.  Because the Family and Consumer Science ( formerly known as Home Ec.) classes visited the library often for research on nutrition, foreign foods, etc. our library had a nice collection of cookbooks.  This cookbook was one of those community cookbooks where people submit recipes...and the little note that went with the recipe stated that it was often made for church bake sales.  
I forgot about the recipe and did not make it for along time, but I had a bunch of apples that were past their prime and cut them up to make this bread.
I recently bought this slicer gizmo from Amazon and wanted to try it out.  It worked great on the apples for this recipe. Note: I found later that day it does not work so well for celery, but I do love it for the other veggies.


It made nice little cubes of apples.  You can see the recipe here in my recipe binder.  
Here it is - 
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil     
3 eggs, beaten
3 cups flour - I used whole wheat
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups peeled and chopped apples - I used McIntosh
1 cup nuts - I used walnuts

First thing is to beat together the sugar, oil, and eggs.  






Then sift together flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda.

I love using this sifter - it belonged to my grandmother - who I never met.  My mother married my father after she passed away and this was in the family home my parents moved into...I remember my mother using it all the time.

It's probably over 100 years old!  I always think of my grandmother and feel I am carrying on a tradition of baking when I use it.

Once everything is sifted add it to the wet mixture.

Add the vanilla...


the apples...

and the nuts.

Mix well.

Pour into two loaf pans sprayed with nonstick spray and I always sprinkle some demerara sugar.

Bake at 325 degrees for one hour...or until a toothpick comes out clean!
It is a dense bread, with nice chunks of apples and nuts.



We love it with some cream cheese spread on top...
and a nice cuppa tea!

This bread freezes really well and is also a nice hostess of neighbor gift.
Do you have any recipes that mean Fall to you?
What is your favorite ?
Let me know in the comments below - I really enjoy hearing from you.
Thanks for stopping by Our New Vista today - have a great week and Happy October!

Recent Reads - October 2025

Recent Reads Nothing like a good book on a rainy Autumn day! This year - since I turned 70 - I made my Goodreads goal for the year to 70 boo...