Every chess player faces an opening dilemma: big main lines are complicated and time-consuming to learn, while easy-to-learn sidelines usually suffer from other defects. Finding the best of both worlds has been an impossible dream – until now!
Reimagining 1.e4 offers the Holy Grail of a simple, easy-to-learn White repertoire, which packs a punch against all of Black’s main defences. In some lines, White unleashes a surprise as early as move 3. In others, White follows the known paths for a little longer, but only when there are big rewards to justify a modest effort.
More opening outrage and mayhem! The author of the 2017 groundbreaking study The Elshad System once again defies the principles of opening play – this time from White’s side of the board with 1.c3, 2.Qa4, and a quick advance of the kingside pawns. In The Elshad System for White, FM Igor Nemtsev surveys Black’s most common responses to this creative opening, including the King’s Indian, Dutch, and big-center setups. Conventional approaches are hazardous for Black: unexpected tactics abound, and White is not afraid to sacrifice material for a sudden attack. Not even grandmasters tread safely in the Elshad minefield. Break free from the shackles of memorized variations and stereotyped book lines. Challenge your opponent on the first move with The Elshad System for White!
Coffeehouse Repertoire is a 1.e4 player’s dream: an arsenal of ideas from a world-class grandmaster to surprise and confound your opponents, combining coffeehouse trickery with complete theoretical soundness. In Volume 1, GM Gawain Jones shows how to put pressure on the Sicilian, Caro-Kann, Scandinavian and Alekhine’s Defences, using lines which feature a potent combination of surprise value, objective soundness and practical effectiveness. The Coffeehouse 1.e4 Repertoire will be completed in Volume 2, which covers 1...e5, plus the French, Pirc, Modern, Philidor and other miscellaneous Defences. Gawain Jones is an English grandmaster, twice British Champion and winner of the 2020 European Blitz Championship. He has defeated some of the world’s best players using the ideas recommended in this book.
Coffeehouse Repertoire is a 1.e4 player’s dream: an arsenal of ideas from a world-class grandmaster to surprise and confound your opponents, combining coffeehouse trickery with complete theoretical soundness. In Volume 2, GM Gawain Jones shows how to fight for an advantage against 1...e5, plus the French, Pirc, Modern, Philidor and other miscellaneous Defences, using lines which feature a potent combination of surprise value, objective soundness and practical effectiveness.
FIDE Master and coach Tigran Gyozalyan fills a gap in the chess literature with the first systematic exploration of the king’s role and capabilities in the opening and the middlegame
Lars Schandorff opens his preface with a quote from the Netflix series The Queen's Gambit: "The Caro-Kann Defence. Genuine bummer. What is wrong with the Caro-Kann? It is all pawns and no hope!" — attributed to the fictional grandmaster Benny Watts. He lets it sit for a paragraph, then dismantles it. The Caro-Kann, he argues, has changed: it is no longer a defence played for solid equality, but a weapon that the world's best players — including Carlsen and Caruana — have been using as a genuine winning try with Black.
This book is Schandorff's second on the Caro-Kann, but not an update of his earlier Grandmaster Repertoire 7. It is a completely new book built around a different main recommendation. In GMR 7, Schandorff advocated the classic 4...Bf5 in the Classical Variation — the move the Caro-Kann was essentially designed to play. Here he switches to 4...Nf6 5.Nxf6† exf6, a more combative line in which Black voluntarily accepts doubled pawns in exchange for piece activity and kingside pressure. Nothing is wrong with the old recommendation, he notes — Black has met every challenge of the past decade. But the new system creates more strategically demanding play and, in Schandorff's judgment, gives Black better winning chances.
In the Advance Variation's Short System, Schandorff retains his earlier recommendation of the immediate counterattack 5...c5. In the critical main line after 6.Be3, he now offers two options rather than one: the solid 6...cxd4 (his previous recommendation, which eventually equalises) and a new addition, 6...Qb6!?, which is equally sound but tests White's knowledge more and offers Black more winning chances. This pattern of expanded choice appears throughout the book wherever Schandorff felt it was appropriate.
344 pages. Suitable for intermediate to advanced players. Part of the Quality Chess Playing... series.
While good opening preparation is important, it is often the proper middle and endgame execution that dictates the game outcome. In Techniques of Positional Play, authors Valeri Bronznik and Anatoli Terekhin focus on 45 key practical methods that every aspiring player must know. From concepts like restricting enemy pieces, creating space, navigating pawn structures, leveraging rook pawns, seizing open files, and more, these skills, while often intuitively understood, can be honed through deliberate study to enhance strategic vision.
Most of these techniques are easy to understand and memorize. Bronznik and Terekhin do not burden the reader with deep analysis and only present those variations that are necessary to get the point. Additionally, the book includes a special training section where the players can test and reinforce their skills and positional understanding.
A century ago Emanuel Lasker argued that improving amateurs should spend roughly 5% of their study time on openings. Today’s club players are closer to 80% — often memorising the very lines top grandmasters need only because they must extract every last drop from the opening. This book argues that for everyone else, that effort is largely wasted.
Gerard Welling and Steve Giddins offer an alternative: a single, low-maintenance system you can play with both colours. Built around the Old Indian and Hanham Philidor set-ups, the repertoire uses similar plans and structures whether you are White or Black, so the amount you must learn — and keep updating — shrinks dramatically.
The book is organised around understanding rather than memorisation. Each chapter leads with the strategy and typical ideas — the central breaks, the standard manoeuvres, the recurring endgames — before reaching the move orders and illustrative games, and a closing set of summary tables makes the whole repertoire easy to revise.
The promise is practical: rock-solid positions you genuinely know how to handle, and far more time freed up for what actually decides amateur games — tactics, positional judgement, and endgame technique. Ideal for busy club players who would rather improve than memorise.
Volume 2B completes the series by providing cutting-edge antidotes to tricky defences such as the Dutch, various Benoni set-ups, Benko and Budapest Gambits, and anything else not covered in volumes 1A, 1B & 2A. With innumerable updates and improvements to the author’s previous work, this book is essential reading for any ambitious 1.d4 player.
The Sicilian Taimanov arises after the opening moves 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6, and is an ideal weapon for Black in the modern era. It is theoretically sound, and strikes a perfect balance between solidity and dynamic counterattacking potential, which makes it a popular choice among club players and top grandmasters alike. GM Antonios Pavlidis is the ideal guide to this opening. A keen theoretician, he has been using the Taimanov as the backbone of his repertoire for many years. As a lifelong 1.e4 player, he is also adept at seeing the position from White’s perspective, making his insight all the more valuable to the reader. In this book, Pavlidis shares top-class analysis as well as the expert knowledge he has gained from his many years of experience with the Taimanov.
Study brings wisdom. Practice brings perfection This 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, attack and defence, pawn breaks, typical mistakes and how to punish them, and opening preparation, providing the reader with a vital foundation in opening strategy. Just like his previous book Mastering Opening Strategy 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 exercise games 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 – Contains over 350 pages of Grandmaster advice – Includes over 200 examples and exercise games
The Modern Gurgenidze
Most openings let White build a big centre before the fighting starts. The Gurgenidze does the opposite: with 1...g6 followed by a quick ...c6 and ...d5, Black challenges White’s centre from the very first moves. It is the brainchild of Georgian grandmaster Bukhuti Gurgenidze, sits somewhere between the Modern Defence and the Caro-Kann, and draws the battle lines immediately.
This is the first book devoted to the system, and it presents it as a complete, combative Black repertoire. The coverage is organised by how ambitiously White meets it — occupying the centre with two pawns, the aggressive three-pawn set-ups with f4, and the closed systems after 1.d4 — so the reader has a clear answer whatever White tries.
A word on the engine age: the author is candid that in some lines the computer will favour White on the screen. That misses the point. The Gurgenidze is a practical, fighting weapon designed to create the kind of unbalanced, double-edged middlegame in which a prepared human outplays an unprepared one — so a small nominal edge for White should not put you off.
A genuine surprise weapon for adventurous club players who want to seize the initiative with Black and steer opponents into unfamiliar territory at once.
Seven years after his acclaimed and bestselling The Kaufman Repertoire for Black and White, Grandmaster Larry Kaufman is back and presents a completely new White repertoire with 1.e4 aiming for an objective advantage in the simplest practical manner. The Black repertoire from his previous book has been thoroughly revised and updated, with some crucial chapters replaced. This is the first opening book that is primarily based on Monte Carlo Search, a revolutionary algorithm that has made chess engines much stronger and more geared towards practical, human chess. The highly original analysis has resulted in many improvements on existing theory.
The Grünfeld Defence is well known to be one of Black’s best and most challenging responses to 1.d4, and has long been a favourite choice of elite players including Kasparov, Svidler, Caruana, Vachier-Lagrave and many more. As with many openings, however, it can be difficult to navigate the ever-expanding jungle of games and theory. Playing the Grünfeld offers an ideal solution for practical players. Alexey Kovalchuk is a young Russian talent with expert knowledge of the Grünfeld, and in this book he shares his best ideas to form a complete, coherent and combative repertoire for Black. In addition to theoretical soundness, efforts have been made to avoid variations leading to early forced draws, as well as those in which Black allows his king to be attacked at an early stage.
The English Opening, 1.c4, is a great practical weapon for players of all levels. White dictates the opening from the first move, reaching positions where understanding themes and plans is more important than computer-generated analysis. Win with the English! provides a complete repertoire with 1.c4, showing how to meet every major option that Black may try.
Playing the English (2023) became an instant hit with professional and club players alike, generating rave reviews. GM Matthew Sadler noted that “on top of all that great explanation, the analysis is simply first class”, while IM John Watson stated: “Every experienced English Opening player will want this book.” Still, author Nikolaos Ntirlis was determined to raise the bar even higher.
Win with the English! builds upon Playing with the English by tweaking move orders, plugging gaps and steering the play in even more practically potent directions than before. This enhanced edition leaves the best parts of the original work intact, while offering all the fine-tuning needed to make this the ultimate 1.c4 repertoire.
Nikolas Ntirlis is an award-winning author, correspondence IM and openings advisor to various grandmasters. His books are loved by amateurs and grandmasters alike, with a stellar reputation for clarity, practicality and analytical precision.
Boris Avrukh's original 1.d4 books — published by Quality Chess in the late 2000s — became known as "The Opening Bible" among serious club players, and the phrase "to Avrukh" entered chess vocabulary to mean obtaining a comfortable opening advantage through one of his recommendations. Both books were translated into several languages.
This volume is not an update of those works. As Avrukh explains in his preface, six years of top-level practice and computer scrutiny have rendered enough of his original analysis obsolete that a complete reworking was necessary. The earlier two-volume set has been reorganised into four volumes (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B); this is the first. Avrukh works as a trainer for some of the world's top players and has incorporated the novelties and improvements developed through that work throughout.
The opening moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 define this book's scope. The main focus is the Catalan proper after 3...d5, covered across 16 chapters that address every significant defensive try Black can employ — from the Open Catalan (taking on c4 immediately) to the various closed systems. The Bogo-Indian (3...Bb4+) and Benoni structures arising from 3...c5 are covered in the remaining nine chapters, completing White's coverage of all Black responses in this move order.
This is an advanced text with dense concrete analysis. It rewards serious study rather than casual reading. Volume 1B covers the Queen's Gambit systems.
In the Alapin System White's strategic idea is extremely simple. He prepares to advance with d2-d4, to build a solid pawn centre and then dictate the play. He will have to pay for this with the fact that his queen's knight has been deprived of the best square for its development, but it may have other suitable squares (in many variations this will be not the d2-square but a3). Secondly, it very often happens that after d4 cxd4 cxd4, White's queen's knight still gets access to its best square on c3. The modern evaluation of this system is that Black has comfortable enough lines in which he can obtain an acceptable game. The authors try to prove that not all of these lines are equally good.
The London System in 12 Practical Lessons
After the success of The Agile London System, Óscar de Prado returns to the opening he is most associated with — but with a deliberately more practical aim. Instead of long, forcing variations, this book teaches the London through plans, schemes, and the standard manoeuvres that recur in almost every game.
The structure is its strength: twelve self-contained lessons, each on a concrete practical theme. You learn the core move-orders and ideas, then the typical attacking plans — the assault on b2, the early h4 thrust, the f2-f4 schemes, queenside play — followed by the recurring middlegame motifs (good knight versus bad bishop, the key queen manoeuvres) and, importantly, the typical London endgames so often reached.
A lesson on the latest theoretical developments keeps the repertoire current, and a closing chapter of tactical, strategic, and theoretical exercises lets you test what you’ve absorbed. A preface by grandmaster Pepe Cuenca sets the tone.
Best suited to club players who want a sound, low-maintenance 1.d4 system they can play on autopilot — understanding the plans rather than memorising lines.
The Nimzo-Indian Defence is an ideal weapon for Black at all levels. It has been popular for over a century due to its positional soundness, yet has experienced a revolution in recent years, with modern analysis increasingly highlighting its dynamic potential.
Playing the Nimzo-Indian offers a complete repertoire for Black after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4, with an active, counterattacking emphasis on the choice of lines. The forthcoming companion volume, Beating the Queen’s Gambit – Indian Style!, will complete the coverage of 1.d4 Nf6 from Black’s perspective by covering White’s alternatives on moves 2 and 3, with 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 the biggest topic.
With bulletproof analysis, more novelties than we could keep track of, and deep explanations of plans and concepts, Playing the Nimzo-Indian offers everything you need to learn and play the Nimzo-Indian successfully.
The Sicilian Najdorf is one of Black’s best and most combative responses to 1.e4. The Najdorf was championed by Fischer and Kasparov during their respective periods of dominance over the world chess scene, and has been used extensively by many other World Champions and elite GMs, including Anand, Gelfand, Topalov and Vachier-Lagrave to name but a few. Despite the Najdorf’s obvious pedigree, many players are intimidated by the highly tactical and theoretical nature of some of its main lines. In Playing the Najdorf, IM David Vigorito shows that this need not be a problem, as he offers a complete repertoire for Black based on positional principles, offering sound recommendations which lead to a fighting game without turning the battle into a memory contest.
Bestselling author Viktor Moskalenko presents an extremely powerful set of lines for White. The guiding principle of his 1.d4 repertoire is: be bold and put pressure on your opponent as early as possible. Moskalenko does not shower you with long computer-generated variations, but has a keen eye for the essence of positions. His talent to find new resources in well-known lines results in a host of novelties, daring recommendations and cunning tricks. When you play his lines and follow his recommendations you will frequently surprise your opponent and build up positions full of swing. This is a typical Moskalenko book: practical, accessible, original and inspiring.
The Pirc Defence is a fundamentally positional opening that often erupts into dynamic, tactical counterattacks for Black. By allowing White to occupy the centre, Black accepts early space disadvantage in return for flexibility, latent pressure, and the chance to undermine White’s position at the right moment.
In this volume of the Grandmaster Repertoire series, Mihail Marin presents a complete Pirc repertoire for Black against 1.e4. The recommendations are based on Marin’s long-term practical experience and sustained analytical work, covering all of White’s major systems with clear strategic guidance.
Key Features
About the Author:
Mihail Marin is a Romanian Grandmaster, highly respected trainer, and one of the world’s most acclaimed chess writers. A three-time Romanian Champion and individual bronze medalist at the Chess Olympiad, Marin has established himself as a leading authority on opening theory and chess history.
Playing 1.d4 d5, A Classical Repertoire is an invaluable resource for players seeking to excel in Queen’s Gambit Declined for Black. Regardless of the specific defense chosen, players will come across recurring pawn structure themes and strategic plans in this opening. As such, the author, Nikolaos Ntirlis, focuses on the theoretical foundation behind these positional concepts and the typical pawn structures that define the QGD. Each concept is followed by an illustrative example to enhance understanding.
In addition to the classical QGD lines, Ntirlis offers a complete repertoire against popular alternatives such as the Catalan, London System, Torre, and all other significant deviations from move 2 onwards.
Playing 1.d4 d5 is an excellent repertoire for both club and experienced players alike, making it an essential tool for mastering the complexities of the QGD.
Grandmaster David Smerdon plays the Scandinavian, but not in the typically solid style of this popular opening. He gives the Scandinavian a welcome twist by using it as an all-out attacking weapon! The repertoire he presents in this book is an enhanced version of the one he has successfully employed at grandmaster level over many years. The backbone of his repertoire in the main lines is provided by the razor-sharp Portuguese and Icelandic gambits, while Smerdon also gives answers for Black against White’s other options. Smerdon examines the most important games, presents cutting-edge theory and shares all his discoveries with the reader. This book tells you everything you need to know about successfully playing Smerdon’s Scandinavian.
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