The Hound and the Falcon is a fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 book trilogy by Judith Tarr

Judith Tarr

Judith Tarr is an American author, best known for her fantasy books. She received her B.A. in Latin and English from Mount Holyoke College in 1976, and has an M.A. in Classics from Cambridge University, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Medieval Studies from Yale University...

, containing the books The Isle of Glass (Bluejay, 1985), The Golden Horn (Bluejay, 1985), and The Hounds of God (Bluejay, 1986).

The books tell the story of the elf

Elf

An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...

 Alf, who grew up as a monk in a monastery among humans, and how he meets love and comes to terms with who he is. The books contain elements of historical fiction, including the fall of Constantinople

Constantinople

Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...

 in the Fourth Crusade

Fourth Crusade

The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...

.

The Alamut series

Alamut series

The Alamut series consists of the two fantasy books Alamut and The Dagger and the Cross by Judith Tarr...

is set in the same universe, and takes place before the events of The Hound and the Falcon. King Gwydion and Prince Aidan of the elf-kingdom Rhiyana, minor characters in The Hound and the Falcon, are two of the main characters in the Alamut series.