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The strategic part of the book consists of thirty-two fully-annotated games divided into five chapters, with the fifth chapter divided into four subchapters. In this strategic part I have given an insight into the historical development of the variation and have tried to help the reader understand the most common plans and concepts for both sides. My own practical experiences in this variation date back to 1994, and over the years I have tried it with Black versus greats like Kramnik, Shirov and Grischuk. Some of these experiences are included in the book. The Chigorin Variation is rich in ideas which can be used in a range of middlegame positions arising from different variations. Understanding the strategic ideas of this complex variation is also a middlegame improvement ‘tool’ and a must for anyone wanting to take his or her chess to the next level. The current trend, developed in recent years, is for Black to capture on d4 with his e-pawn, aiming for Benoni-type pawn structure positions which lead to rather double-edged positions. These modern developments and the current theoretical state of affairs in general are dealt with in the theoretical part of the book by my friend, Ivan Salgado. This ‘Chigorin bible’ aims to be the ultimate improvement ‘tool’ for club and tournament players in the variation. The first part provides the reader with a good understanding of general plans and strategic concepts and the second part provides direct theoretical knowledge.

Sergei Tkachenko, a member of the Ukrainian team that won the 5th World Chess Composition Tournament in 1997 and which came second in 2000, 2004, 2013, and 2017, has selected 100 pawn endings composed by the leading Ukrainian problemist Mikhail Zinar. Zinar is a prolific endgame expert who has produced several hundred studies since the 1970s, with a focus on pawn endings. His works have appeared in many leading Russian-language chess publications, including Chess in the USSR, 64 – Chess Review, and Chess Bulletin. He collaborated with Yuri Averbakh on the second edition of Averbakh’s Chess Endings (1983), in which he revised the theory of “corresponding squares”. In the foreword, Averbakh wrote: “Chapter ten, devoted to corresponding square systems, was written by chess composer M.A. Zinar – a big specialist in pawn endings. Otherwise, this chapter would have looked out of date.” Zinar co-authored a Russian-language manual for creating pawn studies with Vladimir Archakov in 1990 called Harmony of the Pawn Study. He collaborated with Tkachenko in compiling this book.

Tigran Gorgiev (1910-1976) was one of the Soviet Union’s best endgame study composers. In his lifetime he produced around 400 studies and wrote three books and 101 articles with chess compositions. The vast majority of his endgame studies are of a practical nature, meaning that the positions presented could have arisen in over-the-board play. This makes them particularly useful to study for practical players as well as study fans. Sergei Tkachenko, a member of the Ukrainian team that won the 5th World Chess Composition Tournament in 1997 and which came second in 2000, 2004, 2013, and 2017, has selected his 100 favorite Tigran Gorgiev studies, revising some of them and providing explanations suitable for less experienced solvers. There are no more than six moves in most solutions, so experienced chess players can analyze the positions directly from the diagrams.

Rezvov lived a long and tragic life: it was at the age of nearly 90 that he was awarded the titles of Ukrainian chess composition grandmaster and FIDE chess composition international master, and his love of chess kept him going through life as a child laborer, WWII solder, prisoner of war and later prisoner in the Soviet Union. His compositions appeared in leading chess magazines such as Chess in the USSR, 64 – Chess Review and The Problemist, and he won many prizes. Several of these compositions were produced jointly with Sergei Tkachenko. Sergei Tkachenko, a member of the Ukrainian team that won the 5th World Chess Composition Tournament in 1997 and which came second in 2000, 2004, 2013, and 2017, has selected 100 studies and problems by Odessite chess master Nikolai Vasilevich Rezvov (1921–2013), which will help you to appreciate the splendor and depth of the royal game.

I assume that most of you have read (and enjoyed!) the first volume of this series, but for those who haven’t: don’t worry. The level of the content of the two books is identical and you can work through the second volume without having studied the first one. However, it’s still not too late to get a copy of the first volume! In the first six chapters I will mainly look at positions with limited material left on the board. Endgames, yes, but also positions where the initiative plays an important role. My aim is to illustrate the specific features of all the pieces and this can best be done without too many other pieces on the board.

CHESS INFORMANT’S 138th ADVENTURE

DUEL!!!

CONTENTS:

FIDE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GM Ernesto Inarkiev

JU WENJUN’S MARVELOUS 2018 WGM Aleksandra Dimitrijević

THE UNCONQUERABLE GREAT WALL OF CHINA GM Danilo Milanović

BATUMI 2018 OLYMPIAD – Opening Survey GM Miloš Perunović

THE 2018 EUROPEAN CLUB CUP GM Dragoljub Jacimovic

b4 PAWN – A BRAVE FOOT SOLDIER GM Mihail Marin

MAMEDYAROV’S SURPRISE IN THE OPEN RUY LOPEZ GM Markus Ragger

THE SEMI-SLAV DEFENCE – PART III GM Aleksander Delchev

THE FRENCH WINAWER – 6...Qa5 GM Robert Markuš

THE PANOV-BOTVINNIK ATTACK – 6...Be6 GM Ivan Ivanišević

Traditional sections: games, combinations, endings, correspondence chess, endgame blunders, Tournaments review, the best game from the preceding volume and the most important theoretical novelty from the preceding volume.

The periodical that pros use with pleasure is at the same time a must have publication for all serious chess students!

In The Longest Game Jan Timman returns to the Kasparov-Karpov matches. He chronicles the many twists and turns of this fascinating saga, including his behind-the scenes impressions, and takes a fresh look at the games.

Now including all World Championship Games! (FREE RE-DOWNLOADABLE FOR THOSE WHO PURCHASED THE FIRST EDITION) The rivalry of reigning World Champion Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana began 2010 in the Dutch village Wijk aan Zee and culminated in the World Chess Championship 2018. Over the past years, they have crossed swords 71 times: In classical, rapid and blitz chess. All their games against each other - including the thrilling World Championship match - are thoroughly annotated in this book.

The Dutch defense is a highly popular opening nowadays with the idea to get a sharp and assymetrical position against 1.d4. Together with the second part, the book gives the reader a full Dutch repertoire with black. The first volume will be useful for players who want to play the Stonewall, the Ilyin-Zhenevsky or the Hort systems without allowing the French or the Pirc defences.

Queen's Indian Defense

The Queen’s Indian is one of Black’s most reliable and respected defences after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6, and its most important main line is the fianchetto with 4.g3, where White contests the long diagonal with his own bishop. This book is a deep, dedicated study of that system, the one most often seen at the very top level.

International Master Maxim Chetverik examines the 4.g3 complex in exhaustive detail — alongside the related Petrosian System (4.Nc3 with a3), the 4.e3 and 4.Bd2 set-ups, and the Catalan-flavoured transpositions — so the reader gets a complete picture of the structures rather than a single narrow line.

The book is built around 181 complete games plus several hundred analysed fragments, all with detailed original commentary. Rather than pushing one verdict, Chetverik aims for balanced, honest evaluations of these famously subtle positions, where small differences in plan and move-order decide the game.

A thorough reference for club players and above who play the Queen’s Indian from either side, or who want to understand one of the cornerstone openings of modern grandmaster practice.

The test positions in this instructive book cover the entire spectrum of what a modern club player should know. The reader is invited to find tactical blows, deep strategic manoeuvres, opening traps, standard endgame plans and other principles in action. The solutions rarely involve spectacular fireworks, as is the case in most chess puzzle books. Instead, you may be asked to find a quiet move or a reasoned evaluation. Solving the puzzles in this unusual and entertaining book is a most effective way to improve your chess. It will help you to develop a vital skill: the ability to take practical decision in critical moments.