2024 Valentine Treasure Hunt

Happy Valentine's Day! It's February 14th, and the Valentine Hunt has returned!

The object of the game is to solve our clues (in verse!) and go to the LibraryThing page each clue is talking about.

Go HERE for the hunt.

You have a little more than two weeks—until Thursday February 29th at 11:59pm EST—to find all the hearts hidden around the site and add them to your collection.

Use this thread to brag, ask for and give hints, etc.

We'll be awarding profile badges to anyone who finds at least two hearts, and anyone who finds all 14 will be entered into a drawing for some LibraryThing swag.

Helpful tips

Please, use the spoiler tag when posting hints or suggestions. Here's how:

To use the spoiler tag, type the following before whatever you'd like to hide:

<spoiler>

And this, at the end of what's hidden:

</spoiler>

There seems to be an issue with banners not showing. Three of the four clues I’ve solved so far have not had banners saying I found the heart. But when I update the clue page it says I’ve found them.

Yay, for another hunt! Off I go!

>2 PawsforThought: Do you see the banners now? I believe conceptDawg has fixed some issues.

It’s better now!

>4 AbigailAdams26: I'm getting banners now, but now I'm not getting hearts.

This is the first time I've solved all clues in order from 1 to 14, and in record time. But 10 didn't award me a heart. I did get the banner saying I had received my tenth heart, but when I go to the hunt page, 10 isn't struck out, and the tenth heart isn't in the header.

>7 paradoxosalpha: That's the one that's not working for me.

For Heart 10 I get the 'found' banner, but it's not triggering on the treasure hunt page.

>9 Maddz: Same

I'll get those fixed for treasure 10.

You should have credit for clue 10 now.

conceptDawg has given us another beautiful drawing. I love the cardinal.

>12 conceptDawg:

Yes, heart 10 has materialized!

The issue with banners not appearing has returned.

I have all but #7 and #12.

I thought #7 should be obvious, but I'm not getting it, so I'm obviously missing something. Probably something very obvious :)
#12 is also defeating me.
I shall take a break and try again later.

>16 tardis: Those are the ones I’m struggling with, too.

>16 tardis: #7 is a plural tag.

For #12 search awards for love stories, 100.

>18 amanda4242: Thank you as those were the ones I was looking for as well! I still had to google outside of LT for something in LT which was weird though; I apparently don't use the search well here.

>18 amanda4242: Thank you! Got 'em!

I should have remembered to try your #7 suggestion - I think I've been caught by that one before!

>19 spinsterrevival: & >20 tardis: You're welcome!

Anyone have a hint for #9?

>21 amanda4242: I didn't know the book so put the date mentioned and some of the other details into Google. Apparently it's something now on Netflix but based on the book...

>21 amanda4242: #9 was the one I Googled the date, lovers, book

>22 spinsterrevival: & >23 tardis: Got it! Thanks!

That was a nice quick hunt. Two that may slow people down:
#7 you're looking for a plural even though the singular is much more commonly used
#12 is a Notable List, not a Distinction, though maybe that has been changed since the clue was written?

Yay! Another fine set of bookish puzzles from LT staff, with lovely cardinal by conceptDawg

Thanks so much

This is at least the third hunt where there is no banner to guide you to the hunt. There used to be one at least on the home page. I only find out about it through Facebook and can only reach it through recent news. Can this be fixed — please.

Clues for 4? 11?

>28 vangogan: For 4: I had to figure out what ER stood for to get it
For 11: search in Classification

Consolidated clues (for 4, 7, 9, 11 & 12) posted.

>29 Epaisley: I know what it stands for. Checked for it, but no heart appeared. More help needed. Thanks.

>31 Micheller7: You may need to check you have no filters on.

>32 Aquila: you know, I realized after I wrote that I did have filters on. Just took them off, still no luck. I am pretty sure I found it, but no heart.

>27 Micheller7: Click your home page (https://www.librarything.com/home#).
There's always a TOP NEWS list on the right. The hunt is the first in the list with a link (Our annual Valentine's Treasure Hunt is back)

My hunt banner is back (as of the Roundup Hunt) - and I'm not going to dismiss it this time :0)

I'm up to 9 hearts without help - so far. Possibly the most I've managed to get without resorting to hints. I'm getting better at navigating LT; it's things like lists and awards (and specific authors/ books that I don't get the cultural reference to) that tend to trip me up.

Thank you for a fun hunt!

I had a wee bit of trouble with 7 but did get all of them without stopping by here first, which is a total first for me!!

>31 Micheller7: For 4, you'll want to find the specific book described by the clue, not just the Early Reviewers list.

I've clicked on all the er books and I'm sure I've got some of the other clues correct and there are no banners or hearts
Now seems to be working

Just stuck on 13 x thanks
Got it now

I'm really stuck on #6 and #13, I have not got the faintest clue who they might be referring to

>41 Musereader: for 13 I googled political poet and love x

I am not getting a banner.

Hurray, a new hunt!

Can anyone help me with nr 6, 10 and 13? Thanks!

>44 Ennas: For 6, you’ll need to go to the author page for the poet who wrote “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.”

For 13, you can search for love poems despair and go to the author page of this famous South American poet.

Now can someone help with 2 and 10? I think I know what both are referring to, but I need the sort of LT page/feature I’m looking for.

>44 Ennas: >45 Charon07: For #10 the place is the only US island state

I also need help with #2, and can't find #11 either.

>45 Charon07: Thanks! That helped!

Nr 2: Did you figure out who she is? The page you're looking for is a character page, not a title or a tag or whatever else.

I (of course) can't help you with nr 10. :(

>45 Charon07: For 2, you're looking for a Common Knowledge character page and for 10 you're looking for a Common Knowledge place page.

>46 FAMeulstee: I think I figured that out, but I can't find anything on LT that gives a banner/heart.

For 11: search for relevant words for this holiday and then choose classification. Click around a little and you'll find the heart. :)

>48 shadrach_anki: That helped! Thanks!

I now have all the hearts. Thanks, staff and fellow hunters!

>49 Ennas: Thank you, I completely overlooked 'classification' on the search page!

>47 Ennas: I did figure who she was, but misspelled her name.
Now I have them all :-)

Found everything but number #12: I'm not sure where in awards to look...help gratefully received!

Need help with 2, 11, and 12. For 2 I've clicked on every thing I can find but no banner.

>53 hredwards: For 2. The other hints were helpful, but Its NOT goddess from either of the 2 ancient civilizations that I was thinking of. Search for goddess with the feathered cloak on Google and as someone else mentioned Its not the spelling that google will give you by default

>56 mahsdad: I think I have the name, but which type of search?

>56 mahsdad: I am also sure I have the name.

>57 Micheller7: Answered in >48 shadrach_anki:

>47 Ennas: >48 shadrach_anki: Thanks for the help! That did the trick! Though I swear I was on the right page earlier for #2 several times (with various spellings), but no heart. But no matter, it worked this evening!

Yays. Just finished. I did the hunt backstage while on breaks over a couple days. The one I was stuck on was a no-brainer. I knew I had the answer, but...
Then I went back & read the clues. Duh, everything was in plural. Instant happy. Always re-read the clues, the answers are in there.

I need help with 3, 11, & 14. Please and thank you!

>59 Aquila: Thanks to you and >48 shadrach_anki:
I finally found it.

Embarrassingly, I am stuck on #1 and #4

>62 Kreid0126: for 14, search in groups

>65 Tina_Evans: I just found it! Thank you! I also found 11. I am still having trouble with #3. What is it?

>64 Tina_Evans: #1 has to deal with William Shakespeare .

Okay I have been stuck on #12 all day. Is it not in the awards and honors section? I have been poking around the notable and distinctions section. Any suggestions? Am I looking in the absolute wrong area?

Any help would be appreciated.

UGH! Having a hard time getting #2 to register the heart. Both spellings, various searches :-(

>62 Kreid0126: For 3, the clue suggests we need a bookstore in California that romance fans like to visit. So you’re looking for a venue page, which you find under LibraryThing Local in the bar at the left on the Search page.

I have one more to go, Number 11. I tried the one existing clue to no avail. Is it plural? What else should I know?

>64 Tina_Evans: #4: ER = Early Reviews .

>70 Charon07: I just found it a little while ago. Thanks so much for the help though.

>34 SandyAMcPherson: There used to be a banner on all pages stating that there was a new hunt. Later on it only appeared on the home page. Now, however, there is no banner at all. This has been true for T he last three hunts, I think. I know how to find it under recent news. BUT, I don’t know to look there. I find out there is a new hunt on LT’s Facebook page. I don’t want to rely on that. Bring back the banner.

>69 moppety: I think maybe #2 is a little funky. Have you tried the Common Knowledge Character page, using both spelling variants? If so, keep trying, because I think it took a few attempts for it to register for me.

>72 Kreid0126: I went through all the current and past lots. I'm not seeing a title or description that leads me where I need to go. It's driving me up a wall lol

>67 Kreid0126: Yeah I finally found it. I was overthinking the clues haha

>76 Tina_Evans: Make sure you have filters turned off. It was the one genre I usually have set to Exclude.

>78 Aquila: Got it. I always have that genre excluded too

Now I just need to figure out 5 - scratch that. I was over thinking it. I was thinking bear shifters. It was so much simpler than that

>80 Tina_Evans: I would read that book! Just saying.

>74 Micheller7: I always see the Hunt Banner probably because I reboot my computer weekly for software updates and to clear my cache.
Perhaps if you simply restart the browser (only), I think LT loses its "memory" of having clicked 'Dismiss'. I use Firefox on a Mac laptop, so if you're on a Windows OS, I can't help with that system.

>82 SandyAMcPherson: I’m on an iPad.

>82 SandyAMcPherson: I’m on an iPad.

Stumped on 4, 5 and 12. Any hints?

Sure, tell us what you have tried from the hints above for #4 and #12 above and we can tell you where you are going wrong.
For #5 you are looking for a picture book, a tag mash of the main information should bring it up

Again another great Hunt with a gorgeous illustration and verse that is both fun and descriptive!
Thank you averyone who contributed to the Hunt

>85 Exo_: For 4, search ER with ALL filters off. ER is Early Reviewers
For 5, it's so easy to overthink it. It's the day in question and the second line of the clue
For 12, one the left of search results, it's under awards and follow the wording of the clue

Having trouble with 4: I've tried every ER book with all formats, all countries, and the romance genre, but not dice.

EDIT: Never mind, found it, I had Christian fiction excluded, which I assume other members did too. Now I have to go back and re-exclude 20 different genres.

>56 mahsdad: Thank you. Never heard of that one.

Finally got them all. 11 was the hardest. I just needed one more click (and I found something new).

>68 deep220: I've clicked on every award and still can't find what they are looking for on #12. :(

>92 Verkruissen: - thank you... so glad I am not alone. Even went to the romance section. film section.

On number 7, is it significant that it says “young lovers?”

Still stuck on 11 & 12. Help please?

>95 hredwards: I just found #12 by googling and then searching LT - instead of Awards, choose Awards Organization, the line below Awards on the left side. The organization name is three words.

>95 hredwards: for 11, look at previous hints. But one more step is necessary. There is one more thing to click on and presto, the heart will appear.

>95 hredwards: for number 11 look up the topic of the hunt and find its classification

>95 hredwards: I finally found 12 look up love stories and click awards, not award organizations .

>98 Verkruissen: Then what? Ive done that for 3 days and nothing happens. When you put it into search bar- there is only one section on the left with any hits- 5 hits. clicked on all 5 - including the contents of those five.

>100 EGBERTINA: You're probably searching on the wrong term, then, because there should be a lot more than just five hits.

You want to specifically look under the Classification section results, and you're looking for an MDS entry. When you go to the correct entry, you will get the heart. I think technically you could also brute force it through the MDS table browse, but that might take a while.

>70 Charon07: I think i need very specific instruction for #3.

Here is what I see:

Top bar/ dark brown- LOCAL. click i get a list of new york libraries because i am not mapped.
2. search bar on right side- search California
3. i get a map of the rockies.
4. i am told there are no libraries within 25 miles (whatta surprise)
5. periodically, i get two bookstores - both in aukland- not oakland- Auckland .
6. as to anything on the left- there are things like your locals ; members locals etc -- nothing about venues.

>103 EGBERTINA: type romance into the search bar and search scroll down to LibraryThingLocal and click bookstores
You're searching for a store with a colloquially used term for older romance books.

>104 Tina_Evans: Thank you. wow that was a lot. and never heard the term before.

>101 shadrach_anki: thank you. i got there. i knew the mds number just couldn't translate it into a heart.

>103 EGBERTINA: Don’t go to Local first. From the Home page, just click the magnifying glass in the search box at upper right in the menu bar. Then from the sidebar at the left, under “Book World,” click LibraryThing Local. Then enter your search terms in the bigger search box below the menu bar.

Consolidated hints updated in the Treasure Hunts group to this point.

Looks like everyone knows number 8
:0)

>22 spinsterrevival: I keep thinking it’s Bridgerton, but I checked all the books and didn’t find a heart.

>109 LibraryofLadyEowyn: You should probably put that behind a spoiler.

Also, try the series page

>109 LibraryofLadyEowyn: Looking in the right direction, where can you find all these books together?

>111 FAMeulstee: thank you!!!! Got it.

>16 tardis: Same here, why are we having so much trouble with 7? 🤷🏻‍♀️I found a page matching the thing described in 12 but I cannot find any reference to it on the LT site.

>113 SusanBraxton: The good news is that with the hints given above, I did manage to find both of them :)

Missed the hunt when it was first announced and then have been away (on a post Valentines weekend away with my wife)

Saw the picture when I went to update books finished reading, currently reading and purchased while away.

I managed 6 hearts before going to the talk and then thanks to my friendly LTers snared the rest

Cheers

Thank you very much for a pleasant hour spent hunting down the clues!

Finally got all of them. Thanks for the help. I did 3 today with the same words I had already used and got the heart this time.
Love the cardinal. Thanks LT for all the work you do. I always learn so much.

>108 humouress: Sorry, not me. Don't watch Netflix so I don't know what this is.

Oops. Just found it. Thanks.

Just finished with helpful hints for 4 of them from this group. Thank you good people. And thank you to LT and to conceptDawg for the hints and the beautiful Cardinal!

I finally finished this hunt with the hints given (I had to carefully recheck the hints so I could get the hearts). Thanks everyone for the hints, I appreciate it!

Thanks for another fun hunt!

I was able to find all, and only needed a hint for #7. (My problem was obvious, in hindsight.)

Got 'em all, without any hints (but lots of help from Google.) Thanks, LT, for an interesting evening's entertainment!

Another wonderful and fun hunt! Many thanks to the team who put it together and to conceptdawg for more great art!

Finally got them all thanks friends for the help!!

Yay! Got all 14 hearts! ❤️ Thank you everyone for the hints!

I got my last two hearts yesterday. Thanks for the hunt and thanks for the hints (although, actually, I didn't need all of them but I did remember something from collating the hints when I was googling for a clue).

The cardinal is, as always, beautiful. Did someone mention a gallery on LT for conceptdawg's paintings?

>126 humouress: Great idea for conceptDawg's paintings!

>126 humouress: I would love a selection of conceptdawg art t-shirts!

>97 Micheller7: and >101 shadrach_anki: .....
Finally, found that last heart! Thank you both

I am stuck. I am only missing # 4 and can't get it. I read all the talk about that one, tried all the suggestions and still nothing. Any other ideas?

>130 book58lover: Did you look through all the books associated with the ER page? There are lots of them. You should keep clicking for more until you find one that fits the theme.

>131 krazy4katz: I've open every single book on ER. Both now & previous. So far I've got 6, 9, 12 right.

>130 book58lover:, >132 kirstenlund: Go to Early Reviewers and select the topic "Romance". It will be in the second row.

>133 krazy4katz: Thanks, found it

>134 kirstenlund: Great! Now, since you do not live in the US, you might find #10 difficult. Look at a map of the US and identify a state that is an island. There is only one. :-)

Whew - this one's tough. Only 4 on my first go-through. Will be back another day to try again before perusing the hints!

Consolidated hints updated to this point.

https://www.librarything.com/ngroups/23170/LT-Treasure-Hunts

>135 krazy4katz: As an English native it took me much too long to abandon the idea that Rhode Island is surrounded by water ;-(

>133 krazy4katz: When I search ER I only get one title. I will try it again.

-----
Just tried it again and using the filters suggested, I only got one title. So I backed off to look at more general titles and found it.

Thanks to all for your help.

>139 book58lover: Strange! But glad you found it!

Can I get some help on #7. I'm not getting this one, my last heart!!

>141 DonnasBookAddiction: Sure, what have you tried?

under the tags search: Sweets, chocolates, kisses, hugs, monies, pies, cakes, hearts and more...

>142under the tags search: Sweets, chocolates, kisses, hugs, monies, pies, cakes, hearts and more...

>141 DonnasBookAddiction: Have you seen >18 amanda4242:?

Edit to add: Sorry, I see you have. But the right tag is in your list, so you should have gotten the heart.

>145 Charon07: Thank You...I finally got it :)

>143 DonnasBookAddiction: Please hide your suggestions with a spoiler.

Instructions for using the spoiler html are in the very first post

>138 abbottthomas: Yes, I thought of that immediately after I posted! I don't know where that state got its name. Crazy people! I should look it up.

A worthy jaunt around the LibraryThing website. Thanks and well done.

Still not done, but went a bit slower today and am at 10/14. Still don't want to use hints quite yet... I'll probably try one more time tomorrow before giving in to use hints!

Got them all! 💘☺️
A big Thank you to the LT team for this fun treasure hunt, and to y'all for the helpful hints 👏

Thank you all! I was going crazy over #5. I *knew* it, but somehow I didn't find the correct work. And the artwork is wonderful. We've had many male (and female) cardinals lately.

>92 Verkruissen: I think I found that one using Lists

Great work putting this together. It was a lot of fun. That ER one tho :/

It was #11 that got me! I still don’t understand the answer.

Netflix luddite here.... I still can't find #8. I tried every tag mash of brothers & sisters but I'm not even sure if that is the right title.

>157 Mom2MandJ: In order to get #8 I googled 3 terms. If you want to know what the words were, they were "eight siblings, love, and netflix".

Thanks for all the clues, such a great help! I felt the LOVE!

>158 krazy4katz: No luck yet, but I'll keep trying tomorrow. Thanks!

Got it! I didn't realize how tired I was and was not reading the clues properly.

I solved 2 hunts this morning, but missing 7, 10, 11. I've tried all hints there are, but so far no luck.

>160 Mom2MandJ: To be clear: I used Google, not tagmash.

>157 Mom2MandJ: For an outright spoiler, see >109 LibraryofLadyEowyn:

Consolidated hints updated to this point (including for clue 8 now).

>161 kirstenlund: #7 is plural

>161 kirstenlund: For #10 The state that has the name “Island” in it is not correct. The true island state is in the Pacific Ocean.

Not how I planned to spend the past hour :) . . . but fun, as these Treasure Hunts always are. Thanks for the various hints. I should make a list of my most common errors/oversights to make the next hunt easier for me . . . Happy (belated) Valentine's Day to all!

Got them all (with a bit of help for my last 4! #8 was my toughest... no matter how many times I googled it, I did NOT come up with the right answer. Needed the outright "hint" in this list here.

>167 LucindaLibri: Let us know what they are so we can avoid them too :0)

ETA: General strategies that various members have given us over the hunts are here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/353338#n8341135

>70 Charon07: Thank you. I knew the correct answer, but could not figure out where to search it.

>169 humouress: A few of my common errors would be considered spoilers, so will wait until the Hunt is over to post them. Will also put them on that general strategies page . . .

>173 LucindaLibri: Thanks :0)

I just can't get 10. I know which state it is. I have looked up everything I can about the state and no heart.

>175 mnm123: Are you searching in Common Knowledge?

I’m still stuck on 4 and 11. 😵‍💫I’ve hit all the romances in ER but nothing clicks.

>177 varielle: Did you select that category in ER?

>177 varielle: # 4 - I went to ER and then scrolled down through the books until I found with with the exact description posted in the clue

>177 varielle: If you pick the correct category, then it is the first book in the second row. The clue does not contain the title of the book.

>176 Aquila: yes

Number 10, I have tried everything. Hawaii, Hawaiian Island, I click on it in common knowledge and nothing

#10 It should be the top result when you search Hawaii in Common Knowledge. The correct result is Hawaii, USA not just Hawaii.

Please help, still stuck on # 2. I tried a few spellings starts with F ends with a for a goddess with the feathered cloak on the Common Knowledge Character page, but nothing worked...

# 9 hints not working for me, help please. date, lovers, book gives One Day, which isn't on here.
Many results show Book Lovers, which isn't it...

Tried again, GOT IT, FINALLY!! Got all

I think 10 just isn't working for me. I know I'm getting to it correctly and selecting the correct thing. It was still fun and I have all but one.

>183 Aquila: When I search in Common knowledge - hawaii - I get blank screen

I got only 10 & 11 left so solve

Are you doing a search of all of librarything using the search at the top right, and then selecting the Common Knowledge filter on the left, or are you going to https://www.librarything.com/commonknowledge/ and then doing a search or a different search again? I think I would recommend the first over the second, though I can get the hearts banner either way.

>188 Aquila: Thanks, I just got #10. The heart didn't pop up - I'd to go and see if I got & yes I did.

I'm now left #11. I find it difficult since I'm a Norwegean - not an American

It has been fun to solve these hunts. Most of the time I've to admit I messed around, but I found most thanks to the hints that were given

>189 kirstenlund:

Hints for #11 have been compiled in this thread.

(The "Dewey's table" that the riddle speaks of may have originated in the US, but it's used elsewhere, too. Plenty of libraries across Europe, for instance.)

Yes!!!! I have them all. I was trying from my phone and couldn't get ten. I finally used my laptop and I got the heart.

>190 Petroglyph: Thanks, I've found it.

>186 mnm123:
It starts with H.
🌺

I’m still struggling with 11. I’ve found the book and have clicked on everything associated with but no heart. What am I missing? I only have a few hours.

Nevermind. Must not have clicked hard enough. 😉

Where is the announcement of the winners?

>196 Micheller7: Sorry about that! Friday was a busy day. Winners coming shortly...

Hi Everyone! The 2024 Valentine Treasure Hunt has now ended. Thank you to all who participated!

We had 1,618 players for this hunt, and 969 players finding at least five clues. The average number of clues found was eight.

Our randomly selected winners for the hunt are:

tammyhennig
gaeta1
keachachu
cipeciop
Musereader

Winners: I will be messaging you about your mailing addresses, so we can get your prizes sent out to you!

Participants who found at least two hearts: Please be aware that badges are awarded manually, and may not appear in your badges for some time.

Regarding the banner: the developers are still aware of the ongoing problems with the banner's appearance, and the fact that dismissing it once sometimes seems to dismiss it forever, despite the member's wishes/preferences. The issue is on the list of things to be looked at, although I have no timeline to give on a resolution.

Congrats to the winners!

>198 AbigailAdams26: I truly believe that I never dismissed the banner, yet stopped getting it on the last three hunts. Hope a solution is found by the next hunt. I have only become aware of them through your posting on Facebook, so please continue doing that. Thanks.