A witty, random, utterly earthbound assault on our most pondered unanswered question:

What happens when we die?

'Mary Roach is a wonderfully dry, funny, trustworthy tour guide into the exciting but murky world of the afterlife.' Jon Ronson

What happens when we die? Does the light just go out and that's that? Or does some part of us live on? Mary Roach decided to try and find out, and embarks on a brilliant journey. Along the way she has extraordinary encounters with contemporary and historical soul-searchers, from the professor with the plan to weigh the consciousness of a leech, to the cardiologists who have installed equipment near the ceiling to study out-of-body near-death experiences. Her adventures in the afterlife prove to be as entertaining as they are enlightening...

'Mary Roach's entertaining book gives the dead a new lease of life... she valiantly pursues the variety of claims made by advocates of an afterlife - patrolling existence's further shores with a 19th-century explorer's zeal...very funny.' The Times

'It's entertaining and well-written; she is a likeable companion... a fun read.' Evening Standard

'Whatever questions it may or may not resolve about the soul, Roach's bookundoubtably has the power to raise the spirits.' Sunday Times

'Mary Roach is energetic and canny...a gruesome joy.' Guardian

Does the light just go out and that's that - the million-year nap? Or will some part of my personality, my me-ness, persist? What will that feel like? What will I do all day? Is there a place to plug in my laptop?"

Mary Roach trains her considerable humour and curiosity on the human soul, seeking answers from a varied and fascinating crew of contemporary and historical soul-searchers: scientists, schemers, engineers, mediums, all trying to prove (or disprove) that life goes on after we die.

Along the way she encounters electromagnetic hauntings, out-of-body experiences, ghosts and lawsuits: Mary Roach sifts and weighs the evidence in her hilarious, inimitable style.