Customer Reviews
The "Times" Crossword : Bk. 12 (Times Crossword) - By: Mr. P. D. Roberts, 08 Jul 2008 
An excellent book with cleverly constructed clues ; a joy for anyone who is reasonably competent in this area.
Great puzzles, well presented - By: Mr. Peter Biddlecombe, 03 Jul 2008 
Most of this review applies to any book in this series.
The crosswords are the main point of the book & the main point of a daily paper cryptic is the quality of the clues. If you're after lots of contemporary culture or thematic puzzles you won't find them here, but for entertainingly deceptive but fair clues, the Times crossword is as good as any cryptic crossword on the planet & streets ahead of many.
The 80 puzzles in each book are selected from a stated period (2004 & 2005 in this case), & the names of the compilers whose puzzles appear in the book are often listed, though individual puzzles are anonymous, as in the paper. A short introduction often discusses a particular aspect of the puzzles, like the set of grids or the anonymity of compilers, & each book includes a "beginner's guide" - a sample puzzle for which a complete explanation of the answers is given.
What's lacking, as in many crossword books, is explanations of answers. The Times puzzle sometimes uses quite difficult "general knowledge" or subtle wordplay, & it would be possible to identify some of this & add a few explanations to the solution grids.
