The Origin of Evil The Origin of Evil The Origin of Evil is a mystery novel by Ellery Queen (pseudonym of American writers Manfred B. Lee and Frederic Dannay), published in 1951. It is set in Los Angeles, US. The beautiful young Laurel Hill asks Ellery Queen to investigate a series of unusual anonymous gifts that have been received by her father, Leander Hill, half of Hill and Priam, Wholesale Jewelers. Roger Priam is Leander's partner, who uses a wheelchair. The latest gift, a dead dog with a mysterious note in a silver casket around its neck, has caused Leander to have a heart
Helen Smith (writer) Helen Smith (writer) Helen Smith is an English novelist and dramatist. She's a member of the Mystery Writers of America, English PEN and the Crime Writers Association. She lives in Brixton, London. Helen Smith is a novelist and playwright who lives in London. She has one daughter, Lauren, with the writer Damon Rochefort. When her daughter was small, they travelled extensively in Australia, South East Asia, Hong Kong and South America before returning to the UK where her first novel, Alison Wonderland, was published. Helen Smith was a winning writer in the IRDP London Playwrights Festival and was the recipient