The leader of Bagdad sends his servant Ibn Fadlen on a mission to the king of Saqailba. His trip turns out to be long and treacherous, which he soon regrets ever agreeing to go on. Along the way he encounters a variety of cultures which he must quickly adapt and fit in to survive.

Ibn Fadlen is a peculiar man who has become comfortable in his current environment. As he continues his trip northward, he is forced to forget all of his traditions. Throughout the book, he includes various examples of how any given culture is different than his own. This proves fascinating as he discovers the culture of the Middle East as well as any other culture north of Bagdad.

When Ibn first encounters the Northman, he is greeted warmly with much hospitality. However, as time progresses the Northman of this culture are called to a far away land to slay the beasts which threaten their kin. Ibn thinks nothing of this until they say they need a 13th warrior in order to achieve a “lucky” number. Of course there are only 12 warriors in this small village and Ibn must be the 13th. Join Ibn as he becomes an experienced fighter and learns about the various cultures
This story was originally written by Ibn Fadlen; however, Michael Crichton does an excellent job at putting everything together, as well as filling in the gaps that have been caused by a millennium of harsh treatment. Overall, Michael Crichton is one of the best story tellers I have ever come across. He continues to bring out important details as well as promote knowledge for anything you may not know about a culture. I would recommend this book as well as any other book that Michael Crichton has written.