Title: Are You There Gods? Prompt: The meta answer is the eight-letter last name of a children’s author. Answer: D’AULAIRE Explanation: Eight symmetrically placed entries are anagrams of a Greek god plus one extra letter. The extra letters spell the contest answer. 13A PROUDEST -> PROTEUS + D18A AHARE -> HERA (or RHEA) + A20A…

Title: Blood Lines Prompt: The meta answer is a novel. Answer: Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice Explanation: four rows in the finished grid have a synonym for the word INTERVIEW next to a famous VAMPIRE, indicating the contest answer. Like so: 20A CHAT with 21A THECOUNT 26A MEETING with 29A SPIKE 44A SESSION…

Title: How Can You Read This?Prompt: The meta answer is a novel.Answer: Ulysses by James Joyce 1A* BABY -> BABYBOOK -> 67A [A parent may look at one nostalgically] ULTRASOUND5A* FACE -> FACEBOOK -> 58A [Social networking site] LINKEDIN9A* PHONE -> PHONEBOOK -> 41D [Resource where you might find a local business] YELP43A* MAC ->…

Title: “The One That Got Away”Prompt: The meta answer is the popular novel whose title is suggested by the answers to the starred clues.Answer: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn Explanation: The answers to five starred clues have had a traditionally feminine name (a girl) removed from them (gone), like so: 16A [*Denver-based hockey team] clues…