GM Delchev once again delved deeply in his pet defense and came up with several improvements and new ideas. You can expect added material and major revisions in the following variations: • English Attack vs the Taimanov • Classical System with 6.Be2 • System with Ld3 and Le3 • Alapin Variation 3.c3 The Bulgarian GM Delchev (current Elo 2661) proposes a sound yet aggressive Black Sicilian repertoire, based on the Taimanov system: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cd4 4.Nd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7. As Black, it is extremely difficult to get a playable position without accepting extreme risks. This book deals with reliable positional systems which will serve you for many years, without having to update your opening knowledge every two weeks. This setup is especially effective against the dreaded English attack. The author is one of the world’s leading experts in that field and his recommendations are based mostly on his own games. Without hiding back his secrets, Delchev reveals many new ideas and novelties in his pet line. The authors pay also attention to White’s deviations from the Open Sicilian. There are chapters about 3.c3, 3.d3, 3.Nc3, 3.b3, 3.c4 and other rare lines. The book features a new form of presentation. Every system is examined in a separate part which contains three chapters: “Quick Repertoire”; “Step by Step”; “Complete Games”. You start with the “Quick Repertoire”. You’ll find there all the vital information that you need to start playing the variation. “Step by Step” chapters follow the usual layout of Chess Stars books with main lines that branch to sub-lines. Finally, every part ends with “Complete Games”.

American IM Cyrus Lakdawala loves the Scandinavian, and it shows. He focuses on popular lines with 3 ... Qd6 and presents a reliable repertoire in which White has problems to open the position, lacks specific targets and quite often cannot resist Black's tempting invitation to overreach.

Dear reader, you are holding the first part of a two-volume work in your hands. I'd like to lead you to a world mysterious and unknown even to trained chess players, in fact, more or less to grandmasters. I trust that reading this book will give you not only joy and entertainment but it will also help you to understand these extremely interesting and exiting endgames. Furthermore, I hope that as as result, later on you will be able to successfully adopt in practice all that you learn from this book. The topics are the following: The three positions of the introductory part shed light on what urged me to deal in such minuteness of detail with opposite-colored bishop endings. In the basic positions I arranged in a row the most important types of positions of connected and split pawns, the self-confident knowledge of which is essential to be able to solve the more complicated, multi pawn positions. In the examples of practical endings you can see all the virtues and errors which spring from the knowledge, or the lack of it, of the rules of opposite-colored bishop endings. The epilogue supports all that was written, and briefly summarizes the rules. I should like to express my special thanks to my ex-pupil GM Ferenc Berkes for his many and profound analysing work, and for always finding time to discuss any newly arisen, interesting-looking positions with me.

Contains the variations 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.e4 & 6.g3 and deals with the subject of 'isolated pawn', which plays an important part in this opening, quoting Dr Siegbert Tarrasch words: "Whoever is afraid of playing with an isolated pawn should give up chess."

The present, second volume (Games 35-64) contains all the variations beginning with 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.e3. It also includes an Index of Variations for both Volumes.

A life-long Sozin devotee explains the subtleties of this aggressive system for White. The Sozin Attack is White’s most overtly aggressive counter to the Sicilian. White puts his bishop on c4, and often follows up with direct play against the black king. Unless Black defends with the utmost precision, the bishop’s influence often fuels a deadly attack leading to a cascade of sacrifices and a brutal king-hunt. The Sozin set-up can be employed against the Classical Sicilian, the Najdorf and even the Scheveningen. This book presents in detail the theory of the Sozin in all its forms, including the razor-sharp Velimirovic Attack.

The book of Grandmaster Ruslan Shcherbakov is devoted to the voluminous and substantial branching of Slavic defense - one of the most popular modern principles. The Slavic Triangle, named after the opening of black pawns, is characterized by the fact that Black does not want to sit passively on the defensive, and from the first moves risk and provoke whites at risk in order to seize the initiative. This is the debut for those who love a live double-edged game! Possessing a rich experience in the application of the system and having excellent practical results, the author explains in detail strategic ideas and pays much attention to specific nuances. The versatility of the arrangement allows the playing black to largely solve the problem of the debut repertoire against the move of the queen pawn. Without hiding that his sympathies are on the side of Black, the author at the same time preserves objectivity, and those who have to deal with the Slavic Triangle when playing white, can also draw a lot of useful information from the book.

The Spanish party is one of the most popular debuts at the club level and among top-level players. In this volume, Viorel Bologan presents a modern repertoire for blacks, based on the beloved lines of Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian. "The Spanish Party for Bologna for Blacks" is a clearly structured book, with understandable comments and a playful set of responses against the Spanish Party. The author offers two different answers to black for each significant line. In fact, these are two books in one! In the center of Bologan's proposed repertoire is the attack of Marshall (8 ... d5) and the Breyer variant (9 ... Cb8). The author leads the reader on the debut lines with a firm hand, not letting go astray, using a systematic approach. His book is this: - a guide for those who have little time to prepare; - "Arsenal of strategic ideas": how pawn structures ask the theme of the party; - "Fast" repertoire (in each chapter): the minimum you need to know; - new ideas in old lines; - modern tactical motives; - permutations of moves and related subtleties; - a lot of practical advice; - links to more than 2,200 parties.

A new book by multiple world champion A. Karpov and grandmaster, the author of more than 40 books N. Kalinichenko is dedicated to one of the most vivid and interesting versions of the Spanish Party. A major contribution to the theory of the Open version was made by M. Euwe, M. Botvinnik, V. Smyslov, P. Keres, B. Larsen, V. Korchnoi and many others. Today, he firmly enters the repertoire of V. Anand, M. Karlsen, V. Ivanchuk, etc. An outstanding contribution to the development of the version was made by Anatoly Karpov, who won a number of brilliant victories in the matches for the world championship. Table of contents Excerpt

In the book "The System of Zaitsev in the Spanish Party" Alexei Kuzmin summarizes the results of joint work with the author of the system - Igor Zaitsev, whom their duet conducted while helping Karpov, and analytical work during his cooperation with Alexander Morozevich. The author shows the current state of the current System and, demonstrating a large number of new ideas, outlines the ways of its development. Two chapters are devoted to the new strategic direction of black counterplay, connected with early exchange on d4 and the subsequent attack of the center. The author calls this option Saratov. The book for the first time generalizes the material already accumulated on it, and the analysis done by the author allows us to "look into the future" a bit. The parties' strategic plans are explained, which makes the book useful to a wide range of readers.

About the life of the brilliant American, who in one and a half years became the uncrowned world champion.

(in German). 12 books in 8 volumes (complete set) of an exhaustive course of debuts, popular in the West.