This was a belter – not for the faint-hearted, but I thoroughly enjoyed the pretty stiff challenge.
Author: william_j_s
Times 28967 – happy victories
Slow to start (I think I had about 3 answers after 10 minutes), but managed to find a few more accessible clues hidden here and there.
Times 28955 – bending his (cros)sword, left me enrag’d
Very hard, in my book.
Times 28943
Quite accessible, continuing the run of off-and-on Friday puzzles, according to the SNITCH.
Times 28931 – the lunatic, the lover, and the poet
Disappointed to find a pink square after my efforts to get this difficult but entertaining puzzle solved.
Times 28919 – a noble earl and many a creature else
No pushover
Times 28907
An entertaining and fairly gentle puzzle.
Times 28895
I am very tired and threw the towel in with 13dn outstanding and a couple unparsed.
Times 28883 – are you ruminating in the cool shade?
Thinking cap firmly on for this tester, but all straightforward enough to explain after the fact.
Times 28871 – *that* distill’d by magic sleights
Pretty hard. I worked from outside in, and had most of it done in just over 30 minutes. But then I got stuck in the SE, and submitted forgetting to go back to an answer I promised myself to revisit.