Part two of the historical fantasy trilogy The Hound and the Falcon: the further adventures of Alfred, psi-talented elf and former monk of St. Ruan’s Abbey. Following his pilgrimage to Jerusalem, Alf comes to Byzantium in the early years of the 13th century, where he’s joined by his friend and nemesis, the shapeshifting elf Thea. Alf, befriended by the noble lady Sophia (her husband is dying of tuberculosis), reveals his healing abilities and is offered a job in Byzantium’s famed hospital. But soon an army of Frankish knights, ostensibly Fourth Crusaders, arrives and demands food and money in order to continue its righteous journey to the Holy Land. 

          Along with the Franks, however, is another army commanded by the old, blind Doge of Venice – who has a personal score to settle with the weak, ineffectual rulers of Byzantium, and clearly has no intention of proceeding to the Holy Land. Meanwhile, Alf – hitherto irksomely saintlike – slowly mends his monkish ways. At last he accepts the spirited Thea as his lover; he becomes an integral part of Sophia’s charming family; and he wins the respect of the Frankish nobles for his forthrightness. Finally, the Franks attack and sack Byzantium, destroying, murdering, raping and burning; Alf’s adopted family is slaughtered, and sadly he decides to return to England with Thea. A vigorous drama, then, with some solid action, steady plotting, and a colorful backdrop: often engrossing work, and a considerable improvement on volume one, The Isle of Glass.