Eaters of the Dead (1976)

by Michael Crichton

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▾Member reviews

English (36) Portuguese (Brazil) (1) Italian (1) French (1) Spanish (1) All languages (40)

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Showing 1-5 of 36 (next | show all)

I read this a while back so I don't quite remember enough to rate it. I do remember being disappointed by the abrupt ending, however.

angevon | Apr 1, 2013 |

I'd been wanting to read this book ever since I found out the movie The 13th Warrior was based on it. I'm a fan of historical fiction and thought this would be right up my alley. It was a decent read, shorter than I expected and better than the movie. I love the blending at the start of real excerpts from an historical document with the fiction of Beowulf.

It was short though and could have used a bit more depth to the characters and the various cultures. You didn't really care about any of the characters and the fighting and battles was over too quick.

An airport thriller, this book is just something to eat some time without making you want to burn it later. (

)

Shirezu | Mar 31, 2013 |

Based on a manuscript of 10th century person who traveled from Baghdad to Scandinavia. It describes his experiences and impressions of the Vikings in approximately 922 AD and blends into the Legend of Beowulf. I enjoyed this book because it was a time period that I had not read much about and it was interesting to see someone else's view of the Vikings. (

)

DidIReallyReadThat | Nov 6, 2012 |

El protagonista de esta novela histórica, un cortesano árabe, recorre escandinavia durante el siglo X y se ve involucrado en la lucha contra unas extrañas criaturas que siembran el pánico allí donde aparecen. Aunque es una novela breve, la primera parte de la misma se hace aburrida, ya que se narran con detalle viajes del protagonista que no parecen tener mucho que ver con la parte central de la novela. (

)

alalba | Sep 13, 2012 |

Setting: This story is set in 10th century Scandinavia where it recounts and epic quest.

Plot: An Arab courtier is caught up in a Viking quest to destroy a legendary monster.

Characters: Ibn Fadlan: Arab, narrator; Buliwyf(protagonist) noble, leader; Rothgar: king whose land is threatened; Mist Monsters: "wendol" Hairy, ape-like, cannibals

Symbols: statuettes, mists

Characteristics: very realistic, like Beowulf

Response: Although I enjoyed it, I was disgusted by the sexuality and gore. Thoroughly engagin but I thanked God for Christianity. (

)

SoonerCatholic | Jan 11, 2012 |

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▾Published reviews

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▾Other authors

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Michael Crichton	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
Miller, Ian	Illustrator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Work-to-work relationships

Is contained in

Michael Crichton: A New Collection of Three Complete Novels: Congo, Sphere, Eaters of the Dead by Michael Crichton

Is a retelling of

Beowulf by Anonymous

Has the adaptation

The 13th Warrior [DVD] by John McTiernan

Was inspired by

Ibn Fadlan's Journey To Russia by Ahmad ibn Fadlan

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▾Common Knowledge

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Series (with order)

Canonical title

Original title

Eaters of the Dead

Alternative titles

The 13th Warrior

Original publication date

1976

People/Characters

Ahmad Ibn Fadlan

Important places

Important events

Related movies

The 13th Warrior (1999 ∙ IMDb)

Awards and honors

Epigraph

"Praise not the day until evening has come; a woman until she is burnt; a sword until it is tried; a maiden until she is married; ice until it has been crossed; beer until it has been drunk."
- Viking Proverb

"Evil is of old date."
- Arab Proverb

Dedication

To William Howells

First words

The Ibn Fadlan manuscript represents the earliest known eyewitness account of Viking life and society.

Quotations

Last words

(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

Disambiguation notice

Later reissued as The 13th Warrior

Publisher's editors

Blurbers

Publisher series

▾References

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (2)

Eaters of the Dead

Michael Crichton

▾LibraryThing members' description

Book description

Haiku summary

▾Book descriptions

Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0345354613, Mass Market Paperback)

Michael Crichton takes the listener on a one-thousand-year-old journey in his adventure novel Eaters Of The Dead. This remarkable true story originated from actual journal entries of an Arab man who traveled with a group of Vikings throughout northern Europe. In 922 A.D, Ibn Fadlan, a devout Muslim, left his home in Baghdad on a mission to the King of Saqaliba. During his journey, he meets various groups of "barbarians" who have poor hygiene and gorge themselves on food, alcohol and sex. For Fadlan, his new traveling companions are a far stretch from society in the sophisticated "City of Peace." The conservative and slightly critical man describes the Vikings as "tall as palm trees with florid and ruddy complexions." Fadlan is astonished by their lustful aggression and their apathy towards death. He witnesses everything from group orgies to violent funeral ceremonies. Despite the language and cultural barriers, Ibn Fadlan is welcomed into the clan. The leader of the group, Buliwyf (who can communicate in Latin) takes Fadlan under his wing.

Without warning, the chieftain is ordered to haul his warriors back to Scandinavia to save his people from the "monsters of the mist." Ibn Fadlan follows the clan and must rise to the occasion in the battle of his life.--Gina Kaysen

(retrieved from Amazon Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:40:59 -0500)

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▾Library descriptions

Now a major motion picture from Touchstone Films, starring Antonio Banderas. In the year A.D. 922, a refined Arab courtier, representative of the powerful Caliph of Baghdad, encounters a party of Viking warriors on their journey to the barbaric North. He is appalled by Viking customs--the wanton sexuality of their pale, angular women, their disregard for cleanliness, their cold-blooded human sacrifices. But only in the depths of the Northland does he learn the horrifying truth: he has been enlisted to combat a terror that comes under cover of night to slaughter the Vikings and devour their flesh.… (more)

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