Allison Winn Scotch's 5 Fall Faves

Today's guest: Allison Winn Scotch Why we love her: We've crushed on Allison since we read her novel, Time of My Life and found out these 25 things about her.

Her latest: The Theory of Opposites

The scoop: What happens when you think you have it all, and then suddenly it's taken away?

Willa Chandler-Golden's father changed the world with his self-help bestseller, Is It Really Your Choice? Why Your Entire Life May Be Out of Your Control. Millions of devoted fans now find solace in his notion that everything happens for a reason. Though Willa isn't entirely convinced of her father's theories, she readily admits that the universe has delivered her a solid life: a reliable husband, a fast-paced career. Sure there are hiccups - negative pregnancy tests, embattled siblings - but this is what the universe has brought, and life, if she doesn't think about it too much, is wonderful. Then her (evidently not-so-reliable) husband proposes this: a two-month break. Two months to see if they can't live their lives without each other. And before Willa can sort out destiny and fate and what it all means, she's axed from her job, her 12 year-old nephew Nicky moves in, her ex-boyfriend finds her on Facebook, and her best friend Vanessa lands a gig writing for Dare You!, the hottest new reality TV show. And then Vanessa lures Willa into dares of her own - dares that run counter to her father's theories of fate, dares that might change everything...but only if Willa is brave enough to stop listening to the universe and instead aim for the stars.

Our thoughts: This novel was so much fun! Definitely snap up your copy asap!

Giveaway: ONE copy. Just leave a comment to be entered to win. We'll choose the winner on Sunday, November 17th after 12pm PST.

Fun fact: Jennifer Garner's Vandalia film has optioned the rights to adapt The Theory of Opposites for the big screen!

Where you can read more about Alison: Her website, Facebook and Twitter. And be sure to check out her recent post over on Writer Unboxed about why she decided to "go indie" with this novel.

LIZ & LISA PRESENT...ALLISON WINN SCOTCH'S 5 FALL FAVES

1. Memory

There is something about the scent of fall that reminds me of returning to college. I loved my four years there, though I am certainly aware that I view that time with nostalgic rose-colored glasses. But still. There was always an anticipation, an electricity of returning to campus; of unpacking my J.Crew fisherman sweaters; of hugging friends whom I hadn't seen or spoken to in months (this was before Facebook!); of strolling under the towering trees that lined my school's main walkway and just feeling…invincible. That's what those first few days back at school made me feel. Like this year, anything was possible. So that's a pretty hard memory to beat.

2. Favorite recipe

It's funny – I have never been a cook. I lived in NYC for almost 20 years, and honestly, I never found a reason to prepare anything when I could just as easily pick up amazing gourmet food in, like, five minutes. But we moved to LA last year, and suddenly, with the farmer's market at my doorstep and that sort of holistic-mentality everywhere (which I swore I'd be immune to!), I've learned to embrace cooking. Well, baking actually. I've become that person who bakes muffins for her kids just because, and trust me, it's as shocking to me as it is to them. Anyway, not that we have particularly cold days here in LA, but everything is relative, and when the temperature drops to below 65 (hee), I break out the muffin tin. Here's a lower-fat banana muffin recipe that I got from Cooking Light and have tweaked a bit, that I make a few times a week for their school snack. The recipe is originally for banana bread, and if you did the loaf, you'd bake it for longer…about an hour.

2 cups flour 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup sugar (I often mix brown and white) 1/4 cup melted butter 2 large eggs 1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt (I use whatever my kids have in the fridge – often, strawberry or banana flavored) 3-4 ripe mashed bananas (I mash mine in my Vitamix) 1 tsp vanilla A bunch of spices – I shake in some cinnamon, nutmeg, and recently, pumpkin pie spice, which is AMAZING – just add in whatever you think sounds great Cooking spray

1.      Preheat oven to 350°. 2.      Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt, stirring with a whisk. 3.      Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, yogurt, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Spoon batter into muffin tins coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 25-30 mins or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.

3. Drink

This one is obvious, right? Does everyone say spiced apple cider? OMG. Yum. There are few things that are more representative of fall to me than hot cider. Okay, that's it. I have to go make myself a mug now.

4. Activity/hobby

Geez. I should say, like, apple picking or jam making or canning or something, should I? Or since I just bragged about my Betty Crocker-like skills, maybe it's pumpkin-pie making? Hmmm. Nope, none of those. Gosh, I'm stumped. One thing that I really do love to do, once the weather dips cooler, but not too cold (though I'm in LA now, who am I kidding), is to start taking longer runs outside. You know, right when the breeze hits that just-right temperature to push you out the door, even when you'd rather pull a blanket over you? Yeah, on those crisp, perfect days, I love to log in a good run. You hate yourself for doing it about 3/4 the way in, but your cheeks turn pink and when you're done, oh my god, you squint up at the sky and just think, "Hell yes." That's the perfect fall day.

5. Writing inspiration

I do always find it easier to write when the wind is breezy and the windows are rattling a little bit. Sort of like a bear in hibernation. You just want to stay inside and wrap yourself up in comfortable clothes and daydream. So I guess my writing inspiration in fall is just…fall. I hate winter, but fall goes down easy, you know? Everything is beautiful; the world is pretty marvelous; and life, until the temperature dips another 20 degrees, is pretty hard to beat.

Thanks, Allison!

Kristina Riggle's 5 Fall Faves

Today's guest: Kristina Riggle Her latest: The Whole Golden World (Out today!)

The scoop: Seventeen-year-old Morgan Monetti shocks her parents and her community with one simple act: She chooses to stand by the man everyone else believes has exploited her—popular high school teacher TJ Hill. Quietly walking across a crowded courtroom to sit behind TJ, and not beside her parents, she announces herself as the adult she believes herself to be.

But her mother, Dinah, wants justice. Dinah is a fighter, and she believes with all her heart and soul that TJ is a man who took advantage of her daughter. He is a criminal who should be brought to justice, no matter what the cost to his family.

Rain, TJ's wife, is shocked that her handsome, loving, respected husband has been accused of a terrible crime. But has her desperation to start a family closed her eyes to the fault lines in her marriage? And can she face the painful truths about herself and her husband?

Told from the perspectives of these three remarkable women, The Whole Golden World navigates the precarious territory between childhood and adulthood, raising questions about love and manipulation, marriage and motherhood, consent and responsibility. It's a novel both shocking and unforgettable in its power.

Our thoughts: A mesmerizing story, we highly recommend curling up by the fire with this book!

Giveaway: TWO copies. Just leave a comment to be entered to win. We'll select the winners on Sunday, November 10th after 12pm PST.

Fun fact: You can read an excerpt of The Whole Golden World!

Where you can read more about Kristina: Her website, Facebook and Twitter.

LIZ & LISA PRESENT...KRISTINA RIGGLE'S 5 FALL FAVES

I love fall! Though, my husband always teases me that I love each season when it’s new. The beginning of winter excites me, too, but don’t ask me about winter come mid-March and I’m still stepping around slush piles up here in Michigan.

At I write this, though, the maple trees are just starting to blush red, and the chill in the air is a welcome balm after all those muggy summer days.

1. Memory

To me, fall means Halloween. Here are a couple of favorite old costume memories…

I borrowed a 1920s-style flapper costume from a girlfriend in high school to wear on Halloween. It was so short (of course! It was a flapper dress!) that my mom insisted I wear shorts under it. I took the shorts off the minute I was out of sight. Sorry, Mom.

My other favorite Halloween memory is borrowing a dance outfit from a different girlfriend, in middle school. She was a real dancer, who took classes and performed and everything. I even borrowed her tap shoes, and went around tap-tap-tapping through the halls in this hot pink, sequined, fringey outfit. It even came with a derby style hat, also sequined. I loved it. People kept asking me to dance, and I’d reply, “If I could dance, it wouldn’t be a costume.”

2. Favorite recipe

I’m not much of  a cook, but I have started a tradition where I bake a treat for my kids on the first day of school. This year, I’d just learned a neat trick for chocolate chip cookies: add some coconut. Not only is it tasty,  but the additional texture makes them come out extra thick and moist. So that’s my tip. Hardly groundbreaking I know, but like I said, I’m not exactly Top Chef fodder here.

3. Drink

Hot apple cider, even better with a bit of caramel in it. When I was pregnant for my second child, I used to stop at the coffee shop after every obstetrician appointment and treat myself to a giant caramel apple cider.

Oh, and Sam Adams Octoberfest. Yum.

4. Activity/hobby

Every year we take our kids to a local apple orchard for cider, donuts and a hay ride, and we’ve had great luck with finding a day to go when the weather is pleasantly cool and the sky is bright. Michigan is just gorgeous in the fall.

5. Writing inspiration

Between my own school memories and now sending my little kids off to school, fall always gives me a renewed sense of industriousness. Sure, summer is great with all the barbecues and vacations and the beach. However, just like how I love having parties -- but I love just as much when they’re over and we’ve cleaned it all up and gotten back to normal -- I appreciate the renewed focus on work. Especially since I love my work, which is writing books for you all to enjoy!

 Thanks, Kristina!

Jennifer Chiaverini's 5 Fall Faves

Today's guest: Jennifer Chiaverini Why we love her: She is a wonderful storyteller!

Her latest: Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker (Out in paperback September 24th!)

The scoop: New York Times bestselling author Jennifer Chiaverini’s compelling historical novel unveils the private lives of Abraham and Mary Lincoln through the perspective of the First Lady’s most trusted confidante and friend, her dressmaker, Elizabeth Keckley.

In a life that spanned nearly a century and witnessed some of the most momentous events in American history, Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley was born a slave. A gifted seamstress, she earned her freedom by the skill of her needle, and won the friendship of First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln by her devotion. A sweeping historical novel, Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker illuminates the extraordinary relationship the two women shared, beginning in the hallowed halls of the White House during the trials of the Civil War and enduring almost, but not quite, to the end of Mrs. Lincoln’s days.

Our thoughts: This book grabbed us from the first page and didn't let go. It's an engaging story that we think you will love!

Giveaway: TWO copies. Just leave a comment to be entered to win. We'll select the winners on Sunday, September 29th after 12pm PST.

Fun fact: She's the author of twenty-two novels!

Where you can read more about Jennifer: Her website, Facebook and Twitter.

LIZ & LISA PRESENT...JENNIFER CHIAVERINI'S 5 FALL FAVES

1. Memory

I have many favorite fall memories, but on this cool Wisconsin morning I think first of one of our family traditions—driving out to a local farm to pick apples and pumpkins. I recall vividly the sweet taste of the fruit, the fragrance of windfall apples on the ground, the buzz of the bees in the sunshine, and the creak of the rusted handle of the red Radio Flyer wagon as I pull my sons through the orchard and pumpkin patch.

2. Favorite recipe

When the weather turns cooler, I crave all things gingerbread. Usually I try to eat healthy, but when I want to indulge, I make a batch of gingerbread muffins:

Ingredients:

3 ¾ cups Hodgson Mill 50/50 Whole Wheat & White Flour 1 cup Brown Sugar 1 Tbsp Baking Soda 1 Tbsp Cinnamon 1 Tbsp Nutmeg 1 Tbsp Ground Ginger 1 ½ cups Land O Lakes Light Butter ¾ cup Egg Beaters (or 3 eggs) 1 cup Molasses 1 cup Hot Water 1 11.5 ounce bag Ghirardelli White Chocolate Chips, optional

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line muffin tin cups with paper liners.
2. Combine flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a large bowl.
3. Place butter in a medium-size, microwave-safe bowl and melt in the microwave. Stir in Egg Beaters, molasses, and hot water.
4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the well. Mix just until ingredients are blended. Stir in white chocolate chips, if desired.
5. Fill muffin tin cups ⅔ full. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Makes 30 muffins.

3. Drink

If you want me to be very specific, my favorite drink was bottle of Achaval-Ferrer Quimera 2007 that I enjoyed with my husband and a few traveling companions at the Kingsmills Hotel in Inverness, Scotland. A marvelous wine shared with good friends in a beautiful setting—what more could I want from a drink? More generally, I like the occasional glass of red wine over dinner, and a strong English Breakfast tea with milk in the morning or on a rainy fall afternoon.

4. Activity/hobby

I love to run. My favorite racing distance is the half marathon, but I'm planning to run my first full marathon in November. I've long considered attempting a full marathon, but I've hesitated out of worry that I'd collapse before crossing the finish line. After the terrible bombing at Boston Marathon earlier this year, however, I resolved to commit myself to a full marathon as a tribute to the courage of those who were killed, injured, or lost loved ones. It's a small act of defiance and solidarity with other runners and those who cheer them on, to show that no one can take away our joy or destroy our community.

5. Writing inspiration

I take inspiration from the many strong, courageous women who have played significant—though often unsung—roles in American history.

Thanks, Jennifer!