A distinctly chewy offering from Hawthorn today which I suspect will have some of our newer solvers struggling (but hopefully not complaining – the whole point is to be pushed beyond your comfort zone as … Read more “Quick Cryptic 1092 by Hawthorn”
Author: nick_the_novice
Sunday Times 4797 by Dean Mayer
Reluctantly I have informed Vinyl that I need to stand down from this blogging gig (and also my QC slot). I’ve recently taken on a new job which is all-consuming (I really should know better … Read more “Sunday Times 4797 by Dean Mayer”
QC 1082 by Hurley
Good puzzle for the newer solvers today – nice variety of clue types and all pretty straightforward, I believe. One obscure bird at 23ac, but the wordplay was very generous and (if one regards the … Read more “QC 1082 by Hurley”
Sunday Times 4795 by David McLean
A pleasant, fairly gentle puzzle from Harry this week with some nice twists and sleights of hand. I particularly enjoyed the neat construction of 10ac with the Ts removed from two words, and the excellent … Read more “Sunday Times 4795 by David McLean”
Quick Cryptic 1072 by Teazel
Breezed through most of this enjoyable puzzle from Teazel until I was left with the 18a / 19d pairing at the end, which took me an age to work out. (Well, once 18a was finally … Read more “Quick Cryptic 1072 by Teazel”
Sunday Times 4793 by Jeff Pearce
An enjoyable puzzle from Jeff this week, not too tricky but it kept me interested throughout and the whole thing was, I thought, beautifully crafted. Elegant surfaces abounded, but I’d probably single out the wagon maker … Read more “Sunday Times 4793 by Jeff Pearce”
Quick Cryptic 1062 by Marty
This was one of those puzzles that I found tricky whilst solving, but then having written up the blog I can’t really figure out why. No obscurities (other than, possibly, the heather in 3d – … Read more “Quick Cryptic 1062 by Marty”
Sunday Times 4791 by Dean Mayer
As usual, a most enjoyable puzzle from Dean, which thankfully (from my blogger’s perspective) was significantly less challenging than his last offering. It’s always encouraging when 1a is a write-in, and the grid started to … Read more “Sunday Times 4791 by Dean Mayer”
Quick Cryptic 1052 by Hawthorn
Not sure if this was particularly tricky or if I just made unduly heavy weather of it, but this took me an age to complete. I suspect it was probably a bit of both: some … Read more “Quick Cryptic 1052 by Hawthorn”
Sunday Times 4789 by David McLean
An unusually straightforward anagram at 1ac right across the grid got me off to a most encouraging start, and with the well-read earl, the heavy rock and several others on the first quick read through … Read more “Sunday Times 4789 by David McLean”