Clockwise round the grid from 3 run the names (7,4,5,6,8,8,5,6) of four characters in a novel followed by the initials of its author. Two pairs of unclued lights (20/39 and 11/26) each combine to form an anagram of the novel’s title.
Across
8 Aged saint keeps working a long long time (5)
9 Weed with shoot and bit of leaf (7, hyphened)
10 Tattoo’s ending as spectators exit (7)
12 Digest fish with butt of wine (4)
14 In Gabon Herbert developed bleaching agent (10)
15 Fat Inez reduced after plain cycling (8)
18 One fifth of journos worry about columns (5)
19 Utterly trust vacuous boy on oath (7, two words)
22 Put up with trendy nationalist (3)
25 Newspaper exhausted one (3)
29 Dropsy made earl ill (5)
31 Run with youth through most of Norman city (7)
32 Restore sausage I left around (5)
33 Joints of lanky me (not athletic, I) (8)
34 Short-lived heroes bumped both sides off in battle (10)
36 Rat from part of Oxford? (4)
37 Game cop after illicit drug (7)
38 Print of waterfall over canal (7)
Down
1 Scholar gives beetle a collection of anecdotes (7)
2 Weird rich European (4)
3 Awfully ill Angelo takes drug for disease (10)
4 Up in court camel hides head (turned over beast’s home) (7, two words)
5 Commercial a flawless person almost saw (5)
6 Mineral occurs again in Delaware (8)
7 We make reparation in pound notes (7)
13 Communist up close to China (5)
16 Trim cardinal somersaults (3)
17 Lampstand in tin with bizarre lead support (10)
21 Meal with water and small whisky virile guy snubbed (8)
23 Magnifying glass Hank talked about (5)
24 Ukrainian lass meets poetic Eve (7)
27 Mister in woman’s clothing leaving America (3)
28 Nupe sprinkled revolutionary sugar (7)
30 Maiden more meek wants husband who speaks softly (7)
33 Mac’s outstanding sons ground oats (5)
35 Celebrated mouth organ (4)
A first prize of £30 for the first correct solution opened on 26 March. There are two runners-up prizes of £20. (UK solvers can choose to receive the latest edition of the Chambers dictionary instead of cash — ring the word ‘dictionary’.) Entries to: Crossword 2349, The Spectator, 22 Old Queen Street, London SW1H 9HP. Please allow six weeks for prize delivery.
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