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Looking for an easy-to-learn yet super-solid repertoire for Black against everything, which doesn’t require endless memorization of sharp theoretical lines? It’s here – and it was voted the best opening course on Chessable by the users of the most popular chess learning platform.

In this book, YouTube personality IM Christof Sielecki, aka ‘Chessexplained’, presents a complete solution to chess players of all levels for their opening choices with the Black pieces. With this one-volume repertoire, you will not only safely navigate the opening phase, but you will actually understand what is happening and how you can play for a win.

You’ll learn to fight 1.d4 and 1.c4 or 1.Nf3 with the Queen’s Gambit Declined, using the early a6-variation favoured by Magnus Carlsen. This tried-and-true opening will stand up to master level play and offer a few nasty surprises to your opponents.

Against 1.e4, your main weapon will be the rock-solid Caro-Kann, well known as one of the toughest openings for White to crack. You will be able to cut through the theory and go straight for interesting middlegames with good winning chances. Also included are weapons against almost all sidelines.

Why is the repertoire called simple? For the simple reason that the variations are straightforward, easy to remember and require little or no maintenance. But, as IM Sielecki puts it, ‘simple does not mean boring!’

Christof Sielecki is an International Master from Germany. He has been teaching and training chess for many years, runs an extremely popular YouTube channel called ChessExplained, and is one of the most popular authors on Chessable. New In Chess has published his books: Keep it Simple 1.e4 and Keep it Simple 1.d4.

GM Matthew Sadler (New In Chess magazine) 

“A very good course full of interesting and useful ideas. I was particularly interested by Sielecki’s recommendations in a line of the Queen’s Gambit Declined that was always thought to be clearly good for White in the pre-computer age.”

IM Gary Lane (Australian Chess) 

“I do like the way that the author tries to keep the amount of moves needed to reach a decent position to the minimum. A repertoire book that will help Black reach the next level.”

We all have an intuitive feeling of the stress, pressure and frustration on the path to winning a World Championship in sport, but rarely will you get as unfiltered and raw an insight into the struggle to succeed as in The Mental Game.

Aleksandra Maltsevskaya won the 2018 World Junior Championship and 2022 European Rapid Championship. This book reveals the inside story of an 18-month period in which she worked with Grandmaster Alexander Galkin. A year later, Maltsevskaya became World Junior Champion. Galkin holds nothing back in revealing the highs, lows, jubilations and frustrations that were experienced in their collaboration, all while providing expert insights that will benefit chess players and coaches alike. The book contains a wealth of bonus material, including all eleven annotated games from Maltsevskaya’s World Championship victory.

Battling the Slow Italian Game dives deep into one of modern chess’s most fascinating battlefields. As the Italian Game has evolved from a quiet classical opening into a rich strategic arena, players are increasingly confronted with a critical choice: strike with sharp precision or maneuver with a refined positional touch.

This book explores that crossroads in detail. From dynamic pawn breaks and tactical ideas to subtle maneuvering plans and long-term structural considerations, it reveals how both approaches shape the struggle in the “slow” Italian. Each chapter contrasts concrete, forcing lines with more flexible setups, helping you understand not just what to play, but why different styles succeed in different positions.

Packed with modern theory, instructive model games, and practical recommendations, Battling the Slow Italian Game equips ambitious players with the tools to confidently face one of today’s most popular openings. Whether you thrive on calculation or prefer deep strategic planning, this book will sharpen your understanding and elevate your results in the Italian Game.

“There can be no Plan B because there is no Planet B,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. We disagree when it comes to chess. In this book you will see analyzed not only 1.d4 b5 (the Polish Defense) but also the St. George Defense (1.e4 e6 2.d4 a6 intending 3...b5), 1.Nf3 b5, also 1.f4 b5 and, most shocking of all, 1.e4 a6 2.d4 b5. Grandmasters have lost to these systems; other Grandmasters even try them out themselves when they have the black pieces. No, an early ...b7-b5 is not Plan A. However, if you want to humiliate the opposition by being literally eccentric (off-center) and disrespectful ... Welcome to Planet B!

After studying this book, I feel that you should be comfortable using the Polish Defense in your games; it will boost your creativity and will allow you to notch unexpected victories... Although the Polish may not be ideal as a full-time weapon, its version of unorthodoxy will embarrass your opponents, especially if you are well-armed to endure the opening phase. The present work ensures that this is accomplished and gives you valuable tips for the middlegame as well. – Grandmaster Vassilios Kotronias in his Foreword

At the end of each chapter, there are fully annotated illustrative games, and at the very end of the book over a hundred unannotated games from recent practice have been added. In many respects, these represent the most important part of the book. These examples show what human players actually play and just how effective this underrated defense is.

The best way to begin the Uncrowned Champions series is with the great Akiba Rubinstein. Whatever I do, I like to build my work on logical foundations, and therefore Akiba must be presented first. Why? Quite simply, there has never been a player in chess history who cared so persistently and profoundly about logic in chess.

Moreover, Akiba did not merely use logic to find good moves—he created chess logic itself. How? You have surely heard of centralizing and harmonizing the pieces as a fundamental strategic principle. Akiba was the first to apply this consistently. You have also heard that pawn action should only be undertaken once the pieces are optimally placed—again, Akiba was the pioneer. And what about the famous principle of “do not rush”? Once more, Akiba was the first to embody it fully.

As we can clearly see, we are fully justified in saying that Akiba Rubinstein was the first complete chess player—the first to master chess logic in its entirety. He was the first to play clear, plain, methodical chess. No unnecessary extravagance, no reckless risk-taking, no bluffs, no wild sacrifices—none of that. Only sound, logical moves, combined with a persistent striving for centralization and harmony.

Such a chess maestro must be your number-one mentor—especially if you have not yet reached master level. Everything starts with him. Your chess education, your journey from club or café player to master, should begin with Rubinstein. He is the leading mentor for many phases of the game, especially the middlegame and the endgame.

Every proper chess education should begin with the endgame, and therefore our first chapter is devoted to Rubinstein’s endgame masterpieces. Do not worry, however—most of the games presented in this book are also excellent tools for learning endgames. The next chapter focuses on centralization, where you will learn to appreciate its immense benefits. This is followed by a chapter on various strategic concepts, helping you become familiar with the foundations presented throughout the book.

Chapters on activity and harmony, and finally on logic and psychology, conclude the work. The emphasis throughout is on synthesizing these core concepts, without ever losing sight of activity, harmony, and logic. In the final section, psychological aspects are introduced to illustrate the real struggle of chess—the battle between two human beings, with emotions fully involved.

The 64 games presented here are my personal selection, chosen for their logic, instructive value, and beauty as I perceive it. I sincerely hope you will enjoy the material and develop your own appreciation and love for Akiba Rubinstein and his style. My lifelong mentor should become yours as well.

I truly believe that adopting his ideas, principles, and concepts is essential for reaching true master level. And if you are already a master, I am confident this book will still broaden your horizons and teach you many new and important things. Above all, I hope you will fall in love with Akiba’s style and discover how natural and effective it is to apply his concepts in your own games.

The final, and eagerly awaited, volume of the series will complete the opening repertoire for White according to Wojo.

The Tarrasch Variation of the Queen’s Gambit Declined is a fierce counter-attacking line arising after 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 c5. In this variation Black gains free and easy piece play but in return usually has to accept the structural weakness of an Isolated Queen’s Pawn (IQP). In the early development of chess theory this line was somewhat frowned upon due to the vulnerability of the IQP. However, Siegbert Tarrasch, after whom the opening is named, famously declared that, “he who fears an Isolated Queen’s Pawn should give up chess”.

The Tarrasch has had many powerful adherents over the years including the legendary Garry Kasparov who made much use of it in the early part of his career. In this book Cyrus Lakdawala guides the reader through the complexities of the Tarrasch and carves out a repertoire for Black, based on a modern treatment popularised by the Russian grandmaster Daniil Dubov. 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 Black to counter 1 d4.

– The question and answer approach provides an excellent study method.

Your second chess book

Solving puzzles is one of the most pleasant training exercises there are. This book of chess puzzles is intended for novice players who can already see simple mates and direct captures, but now wish to move up a level.

The book, containing 275 puzzles, begins with fairly simple tasks and ends with a set of puzzles that are somewhat more challenging.

All of the puzzles are provided with explanations to facilitate the understanding of what happened and the assimilation of tactical patterns.

Zenón Franco Ocampos was born in Asunción, Paraguay, on the 12th of May 1956. After living for many years in Buenos Aires, from the 1990s he has been based in Spain.

He was awarded the 2016 Isaac Boleslavsky Prize by the FIDE Trainers Commission in the ‘author’ section.

In 2016 the Honourable Chamber of Deputies of Paraguay awarded him the National Order of Community Merit, "in recognition of his invaluable and meritorious contribution to Paraguayan sport, with a long and successful sports career in this discipline..."

In 2001 he was named a “Beloved Son of the City of Asunción", by the Municipality of his home town and in 2001 he received the decoration "Honour to Sporting Merit" in 2001, granted by the National Sports Council of Paraguay.

In this book the reader will find an opening repertoire for Black against 1. e4, based on the Petroff Defence and designed to be used up to the highest level.

Originally published at the beginning of the 20th century as part of a series for chess improvers on all phases of the chess game, this little book contains examples of pawn play in endgames that inexperienced and club players will greatly benefit from studying.

With more than 100 well-chosen positions, the author illustrates the types of chess endgames that players should master once they understand and master the fundamentals.

The material has been reexamined, reanalyzed, and edited by FIDE Master Carsten Hansen.

This is the first time this book has been published in algebraic notation.

Our short life together was fun, fascinating and happy. I accompanied my husband to chess tournaments. We traveled a lot, saw a lot, met the most interesting people. Meeting Alekhine, Euwe, Flohr, Capablanca, Keres was unforgettable. We became friends with many of them. Now, when I turn the pages of my life and remember my family, which was obliterated so ruthlessly, the old wounds open again and start bleeding.

This book tells the story of one of the most enigmatic and tragic figures in chess history – the Latvian grandmaster Vladimirs Petrovs (1908 – 1943). His name was struck out of chess literature for decades. His games and biography are largely unknown to the public – even though Petrovs defeated Alekhine, Fine, Reshevsky, Boleslavsky and many other great players of the past, gained prizes at supertournaments including joint first at the famous Kemeri 1937 tournament, and performed strongly for Latvia at chess Olympiads. According to the Chessmetrics website, Petrovs was ranked no. 14 in the world in November 1938, and his performance at Kemeri 1937 was 2709. He had a 2.5-2.5 lifetime score against Alekhine.

In the first part of this book, grandmaster and chess historian Dmitry Kryakvin instructively analyzes Petrovs’ career through 52 games and fragments. As well as the above players, opponents include Smyslov, Euwe, Bogoljubov, Keres, Stahlberg, Flohr, Spielmann, and many other global stars of pre-war chess. In the second part, Petrovs’ widow Galina Petrova-Matisa recounts the tragic fate of her husband and family members and her search for the truth of what happened to Petrovs. She further provides biographical details of their short, blissful family life for four-and-a-half years, including unforgettable meetings with the world’s strongest chess players and their families. The work contains a large number of rare family and tournament photos.