Character Reference

In this particular strain of a double acrostic, the first grid is a crossword for which clues are provided. Additionally, answer letters making up an author's name are circled in the grid. The remaining answer letters are each assigned a reference number, which is printed at the bottom right corner of the square to distinguish it from the clue number.

The second grid contains, in encrypted form, the title of a work by the author, along with the names of several characters appearing in it. Each letter in the second grid has been replaced by a reference number. Every numbered letter from the first grid must then be transferred to its correct position in the second grid by matching the reference numbers in the first grid with those of the second.

When all the letters have been transferred, the title and characters will be revealed. It will probably be necessary to cross-reference between the grids, identifying words in the second grid and working backwards to fill in answers to the first.

Related puzzles:

Double Acrostic, Double Cross

Download example puzzle

Instructions:

Solve the crossword, and when you have finished, transfer each number-referenced letter from the solution to its appropriate square in the grid below. The first three rows will spell out three literary characters, while the fourth row is the title of the book in which they appear. The circled letters of the crossword will form the writer's name.