Miranda (eBook)

Miranda
by John R. Little

About the eBook:
This unique and fantastic new novella is the tale of one Michael Johnson who lives his life in reverse, starting from the day he died back to the date of his birth.

PETER STRAUB SAYS: "This dazzling, melancholy, and thoroughly gripping book reminds me of why the now unjustly-forgotten Robert Nathan was such a satisfying writer. In MIRANDA, John R. Little uses crisp writing and a masterly sense of pace to structure a brilliant short novel filled with invention, courage, and baffled love."

GARY BRAUNBECK SAYS: "You are about to experience one of the most moving, superbly-written, and exhilaratingly imaginative pieces of fiction that it's been my privilege to encounter."

John R. Little was born in London, Canada, and started writing short stories at the age of twelve. The stories he wrote at the time are not memorable.

After graduating university with a major in Computer Science and a minor in Math, he moved to Vancouver, one of the most beautiful cities in North America. His first publications trickled in. At the same time, the business world called and kept John busy working on designing large-scale computer applications.

John has two wonderful grown children, Peri and Christian, and two grand-children. Christian's daughter is Mariechen, and Peri's daughter is Cavell.

Recently, John has started writing again with a passion, and has had a number of publications, with others planned for the coming year.

His first novel, The Memory Tree, was published by Nocturne Press in 2007. It was nominated for the Bram Stoker award for best first novel. A novella, Placeholders, was then published by Necessary Evil Press. This book was nominated for the Black Quill award.

"Miranda is a sad, moving tale of a man who finds himself largely estranged from the world around him. It's a story of isolation, as his life moves in one direction while everyone around him moves in the opposite direction. Relationships begin by ending, blossom in reverse, then abruptly disappear... He took what could easily have been a gimmicky piece of writing and made it into an honest, moving story with two primary characters you ultimately learn to care about. Its a quick read. And it's a satisfying read."
— Hellnotes, David B. Silva

"As interesting as Fitzgerald's Benjamin Button story is, Little's Miranda is in a class all its own. The book is a literal tour de force of authorial brilliance...This is writing at its finest, and you will be doing yourselves a major favor by obtaining and reading this truly impressive work of literature."
— Fearzone, Norman L. Rubenstein

"Philip K. Dick's Counter Clock World introduced us to a culture which experiences time in the opposite direction of that with which we are familiar.  This short novel makes use of a variation of that device.  The protagonist's first memory is of his death, and he is subsequently living his life backward, at least from our point of view, although everyone else is experiencing it in the usual direction.  For obvious reasons, this makes it difficult for him to form lasting relationships with other people, and his only real companion is his dog, at least that's the case until he meets Miranda, who changes his life.  A subtle, rather touching story, cleverly packaged and constructed.  I'd read a couple of stories by this author before, which I don't recall at all, but I'll remember this one."
— Don D'Ammassa

"Little again delivers a unique time-twisting tale, and like his fantastic novel THE MEMORY TREE, employs dark family secrets to chilling effect (his use of hinting is at times breath taking). This here's the real deal. Deep, thought-provoking originality that you'll read through at a breakneck pace. I thought Little had set the bar too high last time, but MIRANDA places it up there with the best in the genre. This guy's either insane or has a real predetermined plan up his sleeve!"
— Nick Cato, Horror Fiction Review

"Last comes what is arguably not only the best of this bunch, but probably one of the best of the year. John R. Little clocks in with Miranda, a story of time travel in a most unique way... This is one you need to grab right now so don't delay!"
— James Beach, Dark Discoveries

"With age regression being the plot device du jour in film these days (just consider the Oscar buzz surrounding The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), timing is everything. And for John R. Little's brilliant new novella, Miranda, the timing couldn't be better... this 109-page novella packs quite an emotional wallop. Little's prose is crisp and lean, avoiding the stylistic excesses the philosophical subject matter would inspire in lesser writers without sacrificing an ounce of poignancy... And while Little's revelatory observations about the life cycle ultimately paints Miranda as a tragedy in its truest form, he skillfully shows us that it's of little use or consequence worrying about how it all starts or how it's all going to end. Instead, Little illustrates that a life well-lived is about filling in the middle with those wonderful bits of the human experience — the security of companions, the comfort of food and drink, the wonder of travel and exploration of the world around us.
— Dark Scribe Magazine

"Brilliant. Amazing. Astonishing."
— Horror Drive-In

"It's writers like John R. Little that should be selling more books."
— Fearzone