A breezy outing with Paul.
PeterO
Guardian Quiptic N° 617 by Nutmeg
I have blogged a couple of Quiptics by Nutmeg before, and they each have their own character. In this one, I think she has hit the Quiptic target squarely, with clues going for concision rather than elaborate storytelling, seamless surfaces, and a wide variety of cryptic devices.
Guardian N° 25,421 by Arachne
Again my lot comes up with Arachne, which is fine by me. There were several clues where I was reasonably sure of the answers, but the exact wordplay came to me afterwards, and one, 15D, for which I still await enlightenment.
Everyman N° 3,386 (21 August 2011)
A pleasant solve, with a good variety of clue types. A certain amount of general knowledge is required, but nothing seems to me to be too obscure, although in 11A we have the … Read more >>
Guardian N° 25,411 by Gordius
Once I had dug out the answer to 1A, this puzzle gave me little trouble. Gordius comes up with several ingenious misdirections, and a smile at 24A; but there are also some clues (10A, 13A, 17A) where he seems to be waving his arms about furiously to indicate the answer. I submitted this blog first to Gaufrid, who had a few useful comments; my thanks to him.
Guardian Cryptic N° 25,401 by Rufus
A gentle outing, even by the standards of Rufus, despite a couple of definitions that were new to me.
Quiptic N° 613 by Arachne
Several of the clues required some thought to work out the wordplay; in all this Quiptic took me longer to solve than today’s Rufus.
Guardian Nº 25,387 by Paul
The first time I have had a Paul to blog, and it did not disappoint, unless perhaps by being over too quickly – good for the blog if not for savouring the challenge.
Quiptic Nº 609 by Hectence
Some convoluted wordplays, and numerous liberties make this quite different from most other Quiptics, although I found that the answers came readily. Perhaps it should be regarded as an introduction to Araucarian style.
Everyman N° 3,380 (July 10)
A fine offering from Everyman, abounding in smooth surfaces, a good variety of clue types and no outlandishly convoluted wordplays.
Guardian Cryptic N° 25,368 by Gordius
A straightforward but pleasing offering from Gordius.
Guardian Quiptic Nº 605 by Arachne
Another Arachne quiptic for me to blog, which suits me very well; her clues are elegant and smoothly surfaced. There are a few general knowledge references which may not be so general, but … Read more >>
Guardian Cryptic Nº 25,349 by Orlando: A tall story
This time a title is in order, since tales are plastered all over the clues. Enjoyable, with some fine surfaces and a few convoluted wordplays. Across 1. Far from gayest sort of sodomite? … Read more >>
Everyman Nº 3,374 (29 May)
I found this distinctly easier than last week’s Everyman, with mostly simple wordplays, which should help if the range of your general knowledge does not coincide with the compiler’s. Across 1. Win and … Read more >>
Guardian Quiptic No 601 by Moley
A Quiptic setter new to me, she hits the entry level spot on, with varied clue types, and nothing too convoluted. Across 4. Large flag for an Egyptian god (6) OSIRIS Charade of … Read more >>