Hachette India

The Speciality of the House

Stanley Ellin

Stanley Ellin's first short story, 'The Specialty of the House', about a New York restaurant with a special gourmet menu, was published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine in 1948 and caused an immediate sensation, winning him a special Ellery Queen Award. 'The House Party' and 'The Blessington Method' subsequently both won Edgar Awards. Stanley Ellin, who was made a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America in 1980, is acknowledged as one of the great masters of the 20th-century short story, and this volume brings together the best of his work in the genre.

Stanley Ellin

Stanley Ellin (1916-1986) was born in Brooklyn New York and educated at Brooklyn College. He worked as a teacher a steelworker and a dairy farmer and served in the US Army in World War 2 before becoming a full-time writer in 1946. His first published short story The Speciality of the House caused an immediate sensation and won him a special Ellery Queen Award. He won two Edgars for short stories as well as one for The Eighth Circle Le Grand Prix du Meilleur Roman Policier Etranger for Mirror Mirror on the Wall and was made a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America in 1980.