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Introduction

• In A.D. 921 the king of Baghdad sends Ibn Fadlan north to the king of the Bulgars. His journey is interrupted.

• Ibn encounters a group of Viking warriors and is forced to go with them to kill mist monsters.

• After three years, Ibn returns to Baghdad and his adventures are recorded in an official court document.

• Crichton discusses the differences between Ibn's observations of the Northmen and common European views of them.

• The Vikings are viewed as barbarians but they are surprisingly modern with a strong sense of ritual.
• Ibn writes like a news reporter who presents only the facts and has no wordy descriptions.

• Ibn writes for informational purposes, not entertainment.

• If he did not see an event directly he reports it as such, that someone else saw it.

Chapter One, The Departure from the City of Peace

• An invocation to Allah begins the manuscript and...

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