The wait is over. Finally it's here...the much anticipated 4th edition of John Watson's Play the French - the must-have book for all French Defence players for over 20 years! Watson's highly acclaimed work presents a repertoire for Black in the French Defence against all of White's recognized options. Just as in previous editions, Watson often arms the reader with not just one, but a choice of two or sometimes even three choices against the main lines. He also provides a thorough grounding on the positional and tactical aspects of the opening, and outlines the typical plans for both White and Black. Watson is renowned for his creativity and expertise in the opening, and once again this edition features an abundance of innovative ideas for Black. Watson also provides an update of many other lines he considered in previous editions. 8 A French Defence repertoire for Black * State-of-the-art coverage of the key lines *Packed with new ideas and critical analysis

An International Master's to essential tactical strategies and positions in chess.

A comprehensive book from the Swedish International Master Thomas Engqvist for understanding the most important tactical chess positions in the opening of a game, the middle game and the endgame. It cuts to the chase on the must useful tactical positions at each stage of the game. Knowing the positions is one thing but this experienced coach shows you how to create them, even out of nothing, in the spirit of Tal and Alekhine.

It covers other important facets of tactical play, including calculation (how to calculate with the help of stepping stones), attacking play such as defence and counter attack, and even psychological tactics. It focuses on the most important tactical devices to give you the edge, all explored in depth through real players games.

An essential strategy book by a Swedish International Master.

The Richter-Veresov Attack is characterized by the moves 1 d4, 2 Nc3 and 3 Bg5. It is a great system for players who want to take their opponents away from well-known theory, force them into unfamiliar situations and make them fight on their own resources. There are various modern interpretations of the Richter-Veresov Attack which usual involve White playing f3 at some point. However, in this book, the highly experienced chess author and coach Cyrus Lakdawala focuses on the traditional treatment which generally eschews f3 in favour of more classical development with moves such as Nf3, e3 or even Qf3. In Opening Repertoire: Richter-Veresov Attack, Lakdawala guides the reader through the complexities and carves out a repertoire for White. He examines all aspects of this highly complex opening and provides the reader with well-researched, fresh, and innovative analysis. Each annotated game has valuable lessons on how to play the opening and contains instructive commentary on typical middlegame plans. * A complete repertoire for White to counter all replies. * The question and answer approach provides an excellent study method.

Study brings wisdom. Practice brings perfection. This book is the eagerly awaited follow-up to Johan Hellsten's acclaimed Mastering Chess Strategy. In this new book Hellsten focuses exclusively on opening play. He examines a wide variety of key subjects, including development, the centre, gambit play and punishing opponents' mistakes, providing the reader with a vital foundation in opening strategy. Just like his previous book, Mastering Chess Openings is a product of Hellsten's many years' work as a full-time chess teacher, and is specifically designed as part of a structured training programme to improve strategic thinking. In addition to the many examples there's an abundance of carefully selected exercises which allow readers to monitor their progress and put into practice what they have just learned. Following such a course is an ideal way for players of all standards to improve. Although designed mainly for students, this book is also an excellent resource for chess teachers and trainers. *An essential course in opening strategy *Includes many exercise games *Ideal for both chess study and practice

Grandmaster Ruslan Scherbakov presents an opening system for Black based on the Semi-Slav Triangle - an ambitious way to fight the ever-popular Queen's Gambit. Black's weapons include the Noteboom Variation - a dynamic counterattack which takes White out of his comfort zone and offers Black the chance to dictate the game from the outset. Scherbakov also examines options for Black against the aggressive Semi-Slav Marshall Gambit, as well as White's quieter tries such as the Exchange Variation, various defences of the c4-pawn and the Catalan approach. Scherbakov has over 20 years of experience studying and playing these opening variations, which have been tried and tested successfully at grandmaster level and are ideally designed for players who want to challenge White in the opening. This title is written by a renowned Semi-Slav Triangle expert. It is packed with new ideas and critical analysis. It explains typical plans and tactics for both sides.

The Modern Defence leads to sharp and dynamic positions from the very first few moves. Black concedes space in the center with a view to launching a counterattack based on his powerful bishop fianchetto. As leading grandmasters such as Alexei Shirov, Mikhail Gurevich and Jon Speelman himself have shown on numerous occasions, when it works, the Modern Defence is truly a spectacular weapon. This book will show you how to put it to use in your own games. (6 x 9, 160 pages, diagrams)

Chess Developments is a brand new series providing state-of-the-art openings coverage. Chess Developments focuses on the current trends - concentrating on critical lines, theoretical novelties and powerful new ideas. It offers players of all levels the opportunity to keep up-to-date with current opening theory whilst also expanding and improving their repertoires. The Modern Benoni is an exciting, counter-attacking weapon against 1 d4. Black willingly creates an early imbalance which allows both sides to fight for the initiative in positions which are rich in tactical and strategic possibilities. In this book, Richard Palliser examines the most theoretically important and instructive Modern Benoni games from recent years, highlighting the main developments and novelties for both sides. Whether playing White or Black, studying this book will provide you with essential information on a popular opening. *Written by a renowned Modern Benoni expert *Packed with new ideas and critical analysis *User-friendly design to help readers absorb information

Are you realizing your chess potential?
Are you performing to the best of your capabilities?
Find out in this book! Using instructive chess games, International Master Graeme Buckley repeatedly poses the question "What would you do here?" the reader is invited to step into a Grandmaster's shoes, work out all the relevant tactics and strategies of the game and select a move out of a possible four choices. A scoring system has been devised which can assess your playing strength according to the answers you give.
This book is written by an experienced chess teacher and each instructive game has been carefully selected. It is a sure way to increase your playing strength.

Italian-American grandmaster Fabiano Caruana is the perfect role model for any aspiring player. Already a very strong grandmaster, he announced his presence as a leading contender for the world title in 2014 when he scored an incredible 81/2/10 (including seven straight wins from the first seven games) in the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis. This was an elite event where he finished an astonishing three points clear of Magnus Carlsen, whom he will challenge for the world title in late 2018. Caruana earned this right thanks to his fine victory in the Berlin Candidates where he scored 9/13 and finished a point clear of a world class field. ----- Caruana's style is universal. He is a very dangerous attacking player who is also equally at home in quiet strategic positions or manoeuvring in an endgame. In this respect he is the epitome of the modern grandmaster, being a hard-working and determined fighter who prepares thoroughly and plays with great determination and accuracy.----- The Move by Move series provides an ideal format for the keen chessplayer to improve their game. While reading you are continually challenged to answer probing questions - a method that greatly encourages the learning and practising of vital skills just as much as the traditional assimilation of chess knowledge. Carefully selected questions and answers are designed to keep you actively involved and allow you to monitor your progress as you learn. This is an excellent way to study chess while providing the best possible chance to retain what has been learnt.

The classic chess reference book - as seen in Netflix's The Queen's Gambit.The standard reference work on chess openings for more than half a century, earning the epithet 'the chess player's bible'. Batsford's Modern Chess Openings is the most comprehensive single-volume work on the openings. Covering every standard line of play, it provides the distilled essence of contemporary opening theory.This edition is an indispensable reference work for club and tournament players.International Grandmaster Nick de Firmian is a three-times US Champion and an expert on opening theory. He helped develop computer Deeper Blue's opening repertoire in its match victory over arch-theoretician Gary Kasparov.

The King's Indian and the Grunfeld are two of Black's most popular answers to 1 d4; unsurprising given that they were long-time favourites of chess legends Garry Kasparov and, before him, Bobby Fischer. Brimming with complexity and dynamism, these two openings often leave those playing White scratching their heads wondering how to squeeze even the slightest of advantages out of the opening and, just as crucially, how to avoid becoming swamped in a morass of complicated theory.
It's time for White to strike back! In this book, Timothy Taylor gets to grips with the King's Indian and Grunfeld, providing White with a number of easy-to-learn and effective weapons which are specially designed to cause Black maximum discomfort. Taylor examines the typical tactical and positional ideas for both players, highlighting the tricks and pitfalls one must look out for. A study of this book will allow the reader to battle against the King's Indian and the Grunfeld with renewed confidence.
*Written by a renowned openings expert
*Weapons against two of Black's most popular defences
*Ideal for club and tournament players
International Master Timothy Taylor is an experienced tournament player who has enjoyed several notable successes, including winning the US Open. He is also a skilled chess writer, one of his previous books, "How to Defeat the Smith-Morra Gambit," becoming a US Chess Federation bestseller. This is his second book for Everyman Chess; his first was "Bird's Opening,"
Outside of chess, he is the author of two published novels, "Elaine the Fair" and "Amanda," while he directed the film "Wicked Pursuits,"

The King's Indian remains a hugely popular opening - unsurprising given the attacking opportunities it offers. In many of the ultra-sharp main lines, White wins the queenside battle but this often turns out to be a Pyrrhic victory as Black wins the war by checkmating on the kingside! Black is hunting the enemy king and - in practical play - this gives him a psychological edge. David Vigorito presents an aggressive King's Indian repertoire for Black based on the main lines. Vigorito is renowned for his opening expertise, and his suggested lines are full of innovative ideas. In addition, his lucid explanations of the key plans and tactics will benefit all players. Volume 1 deals with the Main Line (Classical) and Samisch variations. Attacking Chess is a brand new series which focuses on traditional attacking openings, as well as creative and aggressive ways to play openings that are not always associated with attacking chess. It provides hard-hitting repertoires and opening weapons designed for players of all levels. * A King's Indian repertoire for Black * State-of-the-art coverage of the key lines * Packed with new ideas and critical analysis

Calculation is key to winning chess games. Converting your chess knowledge into concrete moves requires calculation and precise visualisation. The bad news: calculation is hard work. You cannot rely on feeling or intuition -- you will have to turn on your brainpower. The good news: you can improve your calculation skills by training.

Set up a position on a chessboard and try to solve exercises without moving the pieces! Grandmaster Ramesh RB is the perfect coach to awaken your chess brain and feed you precisely the right exercises.

Let's face facts: everyone enjoys winning. And the only thing better than winning is to win quickly! Mistakes are often made in the early part of the game - at all levels of chess - but a key skill is to recognise these critical moments as they happen and to exploit them with maximum efficiency. This is a skill which Grandmaster Simon Williams addresses in this book. Using instructive and entertaining games in which one side wins quickly, he examines all the typical mistakes chess players make in the opening and early middlegame, how you should look to exploit them, and how to avoid falling into similar traps yourself. All too often opponents are let off the hook, mistakes go unpunished and the game drags on. Don't let this happen to you - become a ruthless winner!

Learn Chess: A Complete Course provides everything you need to know to get started in chess. The first part is devoted to first principles, explaining the rules and basic strategies, whilst the second develops a thorough understanding of the various winning methods, and includes a systematic study of openings, an introduction to attacking techniques, and a guide to fundamental endgame themes.

The Ruy Lopez Exchange (or Spanish Exchange) is a classical and well-respected opening that is a favorite among Grandmasters and club players alike. It has provided the battle scene for many heavyweight clashes between the world's elite, including (among others) Alexei Shirov, Jan Timman, Nigel Short, and Michael Adams. Very early on in the game, a distinctive pawn structure is obtained, and in this particular opening it's the understanding of key ideas, plans, and structures that's more important than the memorization of long theoretical variations.
In this book, noted opening theoreticians Krzysztof Panczyk and Jacek Ilczuk explain the crucial strategies and tactics of the Ruy Lopez Exchange. Using model games for both White and Black, the authors provide a thorough schooling in the key ideas of both the fashionable lines and the more offbeat variations. In this way, players of all standards can quickly and confidently begin to play the Ruy Lopez Exchange with either color in their own games.
An opening originally championed by the great Bobby Fischer
Ideal for club and tournament players
Start playing the opening straight away

In 2018 DeepMind published the shocking results of their chess-playing artificial intelligence software, AlphaZero. Chess players looked in disbelief and immediately wondered how AI would affect the future of chess. Less than a year later, a whole new wave of chess engines emerged that were based on using neural networks to evaluate positions in a completely new way. This book is about the extraordinary impact that AI has had on modern chess. The games of top chess players since the end of 2018 have reflected the use of these new engines in home analysis. They have significantly developed opening theory as well as the general understanding of middlegame concepts. By analysing these games with the help of neural network engines, FIDE Master Joshua Doknjas discusses numerous exciting ideas and examines areas of chess that had previously been overlooked. With thorough explanations, questions, and exercises, this book provides fascinating material for masters and less experienced players alike.

This book brings together the two greatest names in the history of chess. The author, Garry Kasparov, is the world number one and, by common consent, the greatest player ever. The subject of the book, Bobby Fischer, is the only American to have become world champion and is probably the greatest natural talent the world has ever seen.In the period between 1955 and 1972 Fischer, more or less single-handedly, took on the might of the Soviet Chess Empire, and won. During this time Fischer scored astonishing successes the like of which had not been seen before. These included 11/11 in the 1963/64 US Championship and match victories (en route to the World Championship) by the score of 6-0 against two of the strongest players in the world, Mark Taimanov and Bent Larsen. The climax of Fischer's campaign was his unforgettable match win in Reykjavik in 1972 against Boris Spassky. Fischer is almost equally well-known for his temperamental behaviour away from the board, as his play on it. He made extreme demands of all those around him including tournament organisers. When these demands were not met he often refused to play. The 1972 match against Spassky required the intervention of no less than Henry Kissinger to smooth things over. In 1975 when he was due to defend his title against Anatoly Karpov, Fischer was completely unable to agree terms with FIDE (the World Chess Federation) and was defaulted. After this he more or less gave up chess, playing only once, a 'return' match against Spassky in 1992. In this book, a must for all serious chessplayers, Kasparov analyses deeply Fischer's greatest games and assesses the legacy of this great American genius.

Prominent opening specialists take a revolutionary look at the Pirc and Modern Defences and select a wealth of 'dangerous' options for both White and Black.

To improve and succeed, a chessplayer must be able calculate precisely and visualize prospective positions. This is easier said than done. While pondering the next move, a chessplayer frequently keeps “replaying” the same melody in his mind, thus falling into a kind of trance.

This book by Russian grandmaster Konstantin Chernyshov is designed to improve your visualization and calculation skills. With 500 exercises and an additional 250 puzzles, the author provides a vast amount of material to work through for students and coaches of the game. Most exercises require the reader to go through several stages of thought, including visualizing the configuration of the pieces, evaluating the resulting positions, and finally, calculating an accurate continuation.

The regimen suggested by the author will require a disciplined approach by serious chessplayers. The exercises and puzzles start out with easy examples, but they gradually become more difficult. And all are meant to be solved without sight of the board.

As noted by Ian Harris in his foreword:
"Cognitive Chess is designed to train you to visualize the board and correctly calculate sequences in your mind, skills that are essential to problem solving in all phases of the game. Players who train in these areas will certainly see an overall improvement in their game. After all, chess is ultimately a contest between opponents to determine who can “out-calculate” the other."

Cognitive Chess: When you are serious about taking your game to the next level...

Prominent opening specialists take a revolutionary look at the ever-popular King's Indian and select a wealth of 'dangerous' options for both White and Black.

The legendary Estonian player Paul Keres was one of the strongest players never to win the World Chess Championship. The 'Crown Prince of Chess' was universally admired for his clear-cut style of play and chivalrous personality. This biography of the three-times Soviet Champion contains a superb selection of 170 annotated games opening 1 d4 and the English/Reti complex. A companion volume, which deals with the open game, is also available for Everyman Chess

In this new book, Romain examines the latest aspect of his chess career - being the second of a world-class player. He worked with Veselin Topalov from 2010 until 2014, notably helping him win the 2012-13 Grand Prix series and become a World Championship candidate. Romain tells you everything about his 'magic' experience in this book. Going through the tournaments where he assisted GM Topalov, the author not only analyses beautiful games, but also explains how they managed to invent new ideas and even reveals some that haven't been played yet. He also answers questions most chess fans will be curious about: How do you become the second of a top player? What does the job involve? How do you work together? How do you prepare for an important game or important tournament? What is a chess genius like in real life? If you enjoy fascinating games and unexpected opening ideas, and would like to know what goes on behind the scenes, this book is for you!