Timeline

The story begins in the Arizona desert with a mysterious, confused man who dies soon after being found, a puzzle that leads to ITC, a powerful company run by the ruthless Robert Doniger. ITC is funding Johnston's excavation of two castles and a ruined town in the Dordogne, and it has discovered a way to transmit people through what it describes as the multiverse. When Johnston's message for help is found in the ruins, written on ancient parchment, the students realize something has gone terribly wrong.

Chris Hughes, a history student, André Marek, who has trained in medieval combat, and Kate Erickson, an architecture student and skilled climber, travel to 1357. They discover that the past is far more dangerous and strange than their studies suggested. They must navigate the conflict between the ruthless knight Oliver de Vannes and his rivals, escape castles, join tournaments and use their knowledge of the ruins to survive. Crichton fills the book with detailed history and some violent battle scenes, while the countdown to their return keeps the tension high.

Thrilling and well researched, later adapted as a film. About 480 pages in the Ballantine paperback.