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Welcome to the blog tour celebrating the
1 Year Anniversary of the release of the
Paranormal Gothic Horror Novel

STRUCK
by Clarissa Johal

Follow the tour to read new reviews, interviews with Clarissa,
and exclusive excerpts.

“The shadows hadn’t been waiting. The shadows had been invited.”


About STRUCK

After a painful breakup, Gwynneth Reese moves in with her best friend and takes a job at a retirement home. She grows especially close to one resident, who dies alone the night of a terrific storm. On the way home from paying her last respects, Gwynneth is caught in another storm and is struck by lightning. She wakes in the hospital with a vague memory of being rescued by a mysterious stranger. Following her release from the hospital, the stranger visits her at will and offers Gwynneth a gift–one that will stay the hands of death. Gwynneth is uncertain whether Julian is a savior or something more sinister… for as he shares more and more of this gift, his price becomes more and more deadly.

Book Details:
Title: STRUCK
Genre: Paranormal Gothic Horror
Author(s): Clarissa Johal
Publisher: Musa Publishing
Cover Artist: Kelly Shorten
ISBN: 978-1-61937-690-8
Number of Pages: 255
Price: $4.99
Purchase Links:
 
Exclusive Excerpt:

They perused the aisles of clothing together, Fenten carrying a mountain of clothes to try on and Gwynneth with two T-shirts.

“Pick something else, Gwennie,” he complained. “A dress or something that looks hot.”

“Where am I going to wear something hot, Fenten?” she scoffed. “I’m sure all the residents would appreciate that.”

“Not for work, girl. For going out.”

“I don’t go out.”

“Maybe you should. When’s the last time you and Seth went out for a night on the town? Dancing or clubbing? You two need to get drunk together.”

She felt her cheeks warm slightly. It was stuffy in the clothing store. “I don’t know of any place to go.”

“In San Francisco? Honey, there are more places than you could cover in a lifetime. Next time I go out, you’re both coming with me.”

She didn’t say anything to that. The idea of trolling the singles clubs scared her more than she cared to admit.

“How about this?” Fenten held up a red dress.

“It’s nice.”

“Nice? There’s no nice about this dress. It’s hot, is what it is. You’d look great in it, too. Try it on.” He tossed it at her.

She sighed, exasperated. “It’s too fancy. I don’t think it will look good on me.”

“Go.” He gave her a little push toward the changing room. “Just try it on. And give me those.” He grabbed the T-shirts from her. “Enough with the T-shirts. Think grown-up clothes. You’ve got a body underneath those poor excuses for fashion. You need to find it.”

“Fine, I’ll try it on,” she said. “You can be so pushy, seriously.”

She checked the corridor of changing rooms. They were all empty, save for the one at the end, which seemed to have some movement in it. She started for the first door and found it locked. She tried the second and again found it locked. All of them, except for the changing room next to the one occupied, were locked. Exasperated, she set the dress hanger on the post of that one and closed the door. Shimmying out of her jeans and T-shirt, she unzipped the red dress and slipped it over her head, carefully navigating her burn. She decided not to zip it up and then checked the mirror. It was a beautiful dress. Really it was. “It’s just not me,” she murmured. “Too fancy.”

Gwynneth stared at her reflection and frowned. It was getting darker in the store. She looked up. Over-bright fluorescent lights glared down at her. “What the hell?” Her T-shirt slipped from the peg. As she bent to pick it up, something dark shot out from under the changing room beside her and snatched it. “Hey!” She knocked on the wall. “Hello? That’s my T-shirt!”

Silence.

She peered under the short wall that separated the changing rooms. The room next to hers appeared empty. I swear there was somebody in there a second ago. Maybe they’re standing on the chair. “Hello?” She knocked again. Hesitant, she stepped out of her changing room and tried the perpetrator’s door. The light overhead flickered, and the door swung open.

The dressing room was empty. Her T-shirt lay on the ground. She bent to retrieve it and caught what should have been her reflection in the mirror. But it wasn’t her reflection. The mirror was completely black. Gwynneth froze in horror. Something was watching her from the other side. She could feel its presence, poised and waiting to spring. A hissing whisper made its way into her ear and trailed away. She backed out of the dressing room and fled down the corridor.

“Okay, now you look hot, Gwennie,” Fenten remarked as she joined him.“The fact that you didn’t zip it up? Even better.”

Praise for STRUCK:
Lovely Reads

“This book grabs you in right away and hold your attention…I so loved this book and didn’t put it down until the very end.” Read More ~ Lovely Reads

 Bex ‘n’ Books

“This is a spooky thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. You won’t be able to put it down because you must finish it to see what happens, even if it keeps you up late at night to do so.” Read More ~ Bex’n’Books

 Bibliophilic Book Blog

“STRUCK will get beneath your skin from the very beginning. Gwen’s a likable character with a difficult past and tenuous future after meeting Julian. I liked the secondary characters, especially Fenten and Poppy. The characters were definitely all well-developed and engaging.” Read More ~ Bibliophilic Book Blog

 Straight from the Library

“The characters are well drawn and likable….The action is fast paced– I read the book in one sitting.” Read More ~ Straight from the Library
 
About the Author:
Clarissa Johal has worked as a veterinary assistant, zoo-keeper aide and vegetarian chef. Writing has always been her passion. When she’s not listening to the ghosts in her head, she’s dancing or taking photographs of gargoyles. She shares her life with her husband, two daughters and every stray animal that darkens the doorstep. One day, she expects that a wayward troll will wander into her yard, but that hasn’t happened yet.
*Member of the Author’s Guild
Coming May 19, 2015 from Permuted Press
VOICES, a paranormal psychological horror
 
STRUCK, a paranormal gothic horror
(2014) Musa Publishing
*Indie Book of the Day Award
*Nominated for the Preditors and Editors Readers Poll 2014
BETWEEN, a story of the paranormal
(2012) Musa Publishing
*Second place in the Preditors and Editors Readers Poll 2012
*Paranormal Reads gives BETWEEN 4 out of 5 Bats
PRADEE, a young adult fantasy
(2010) CreateSpace
*Second round finalist in Amazon’s Breakthrough Novel Award Contest 2012
Short stories:
PIGEONS, published in the literary journal Susurrus
THE ROPE, published in the literary journal Susurrus
Non-Fiction:
A WAY OF LIFE, published in The Sacramento Bee
 
Find Clarissa Online:
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
 
How did you come up with the idea for STRUCK?
Some stories begin as random scenes, some as characters, and some are born from asking the question, “What if?” I was hit with the idea of STRUCK while running on a forest trail near my house. It was during a thunderstorm and I wondered what it would be like to be hit by lightning. I write about ghosts and things that go bump in the night and in essence, those entities are energy. What if a portal was opened by a lightning strike? And what if that portal allowed the energy from those entities to escape? The idea was intriguing and I went to bed still thinking about it. That night, I dreamt I stood in a field, with lightning striking the ground all around me. But the lightning wasn’t just releasing electrical energy, the lightning was releasing negative entities from the Otherworld. I woke from the nightmare in a panic, thinking those entities had somehow attached themselves to me. And so a story is born.
I went on to research the effects of being struck by lightning, interviewed several lightning survivors, and began writing STRUCK. I’m continually amazed how a, “What if?” idea can expand into a novel.
What first inspired you to become a writer? And what compels you to continue your career as an author?
I wrote my first short story in grade six. I was asked by the teacher to read it aloud to the class, which terrified me. After I was finished, I realized that I actually had everyone’s attention! I was shy and we moved every year, so I was always the new kid. When you’re in that situation, it’s kind of like being invisible. Finding my voice through story-telling made me realize how powerful writing could be. As far as continuing—truthfully? I think I’d go nuts if I didn’t write.
What made you choose the genre of paranormal gothic horror?

I started out writing fantasy fiction. I was working on the second installment to my PRADEE series when there were two characters that kept showing up on the page, over and over. They didn’t belong in fantasy novel, nor did they belong in my story! But their backstory came to me so vividly, that I set aside my series and wrote my first paranormal novel, BETWEEN. I’ve been pulled into the Otherworld permanently now. The ideas come faster than I can write them down.

Tour Presented by:

Tour Schedule:

January 1: Tour Kick-Off http://saphsbookblog.blogspot.com/
January 2: Exclusive Excerpt http://ifeeltheneedtheneedtoread.com/
January 4: Review http://www.carolynspearromance.com/blog
January 5: Review HorrorMade.blogspot.com
January 7: Exclusive Excerpt http://saphsbookblog.blogspot.com/
January 9: Exclusive Excerpt http://aliciajoseph.com/
January 12: Review https://twitter.com/peach83352
January 15: Exclusive Excerpt https://darcnina.wordpress.com
January 17: Review http://mullenarmyfamily.blogspot.com/
January 19: Exclusive Excerpt http://sloanetaylor.blogspot.com/
January 20: Exclusive Excerpt http://www.babsbookbistro.net/
January 21: Interview http://ifeeltheneedtheneedtoread.com/
January 23: Exclusive Excerpt https://fillingspaces.wordpress.com/
January 26: Interview http://karengreco.blogspot.com/
January 28: Review http://neutiquamerro.wordpress.com
January 31: Reviews (by 3 different tour hosts)
1) http://ifeeltheneedtheneedtoread.com/
2) http://www.themoralofourstories.com
3) http://hello-booklover.tumblr.com/