Everybody knows what the afterlife is supposed to be like- sitting on clouds, playing harps, reunited with loved ones. But what if it's not? What if there were suddenly irrefutable proof that the afterlife is hardly heaven and actually far worse than any religion's hell? What if instead of eternal bliss we'll someday find ourselves, regardless of faith or good works, trapped in a maddening existence of darkness and solitude, our senses, save our anguished thoughts, gone. In fact, some near death experiences have revealed just such a terrifying isolation. What if this were our afterlife - forever?

The premise of A Joyful Noise is that one man, through an accidental communication with the dead, finds proof of such an afterlife. How he, and ultimately the world, must deal with this horrifying prospect will inspire your nightmares as you ponder 'what if'?

Jeff Horn has written numerous magazine articles on music and entertainment, and is the author of the book Hungry Heart: The Music of Bruce Springsteen, to be published in 2000. A Joyful Noise is his first novel.

'Please, my babies! My God! They're still inside.'

'Ma'am, calm down and speak slower. I can't follow what you're trying to tell me.'

'Inside! My two daughters. Patty and...Patty and Suzanne. They're just three and four. Please. You gotta help them.'

'But how? Where?'

'The house. I just left the house for a second. To go next door to borrow some milk. From Louise. I swear, only for a second. When I smelled the...I tried to go back and get them. I could hear them screaming. Screaming for their mama. But now it's so dark and quiet, and I'm not hearing nobody. 'Cept you.'

'When did this happen?'

'Right now. When else? I-I guess something fell on me. The roof, maybe, or a wall. I feel trapped. Pains me some, too. Pretty bad, at times. But forget me and find my babies. Oh, Jesus Christ in heaven, find my babies!'