27 across, 15 down: Bobbing item belongs at sea! (7, 2, 1, 6)
My vote for the best &lit going around: bobbing item belongs at sea = message in a bottle = bobbing item belongs at sea.

That anagram is ridiculously good and to wrap that in an &lit is genius.

13 across: Girl hot like Joyce? (5)
Clever and compact: Girl hot = Iris h = Irish = like Joyce.

21 down: Monkey with outspoken craft in the Howard Years? (5)
Ridiculously good masking of the direct clue and a damn good red herring in the guise of an anagram indicator: monkey with outspoken = tamper outspoken = Tampa = craft in the Howard Years.

17 down: Loudly loots Nero’s city to find Fu Manchu author (3, 6)
Exceptional: loudly loots Nero’s city = loudly sacks Roma = Sax Rohmer = Fu Manchu author.

1 across: Relegated Knight within meant trading with Storm finalist (7)
Perhaps the most difficult clue of the crossword, yet a goodie: Knight within meant trading with Storm finalist = n within denoted trading with m = demoted = relegated.

15 across: Press peeved by German decoration (4, 5)
Nice: press peeved = Iron Cross = German decoration.

5 down: Row disrupts ‘fluent’ retail tycoon (5, 4)
Excellent word bending: row disrupts ‘fluent’ = rank disrupts flowy = Frank Lowy = retail tycoon.

19 across: Watch Part 10 (5)
Clever: Part 10 = role x = Rolex = watch.

28 across: Drunken disgrace after nog cocktail? (7)
Nog seems so appropriate as an adjective: drunken disgrace after nog = sidecarg no g = sidecar = cocktail.