Kat

Northwest was a struggle for me, but I was delighted when I came up with maestro. I'm still absolutely terrible at crosswords but the question mark clues are starting to come to me more easily.

As a newer solver I actually really appreciate the easier "tricks". This was not easy for me - I knew rebuses were an option but have very little idea how to recognize them. I appreciate having some puzzles that are harder (and for me currently not doable... yet!) and some that go back to simpler roots. I was excited this week as I was able to solve 2 puzzles with only the hints from that day's crossword column! I agree with some other comments that I read that this article felt a little negative. But it's also important to share honest opinions, so I understand. But hopefully the crossword author can hear me when I say that I really appreciated this puzzle!!