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Akiba Rubinstein is universally considered one of the strongest chess players who never won the world crown. From a modest upbringing in the Polish city of Lódz, he rose to become the principal challenger to the world champion Emanuel Lasker in the years leading up to the First World War. Although their world title match failed to take place, mainly due to the outbreak of wartime hostilities, Rubinstein's legacy has remained equal to that of any world champion.

His best games are conspicuous for their power and clarity and reveal his deep positional comprehension, brilliant combinational abilities, and virtuosic endgame technique. Rubinstein also pioneered many innovative and pragmatic ideas in all phases of the game that continue to influence the theory and praxis of modern chess.

Initially published in Russian, Akiba Rubinstein by Yuri Razuvaev and Valery Murakhveri is widely acclaimed as one of the most outstanding chess books of the latter part of the twentieth century. This work comes up repeatedly when today's top chess players name books that have significantly influenced their understanding of the game.

After an in-depth biographical chapter, most of the book consists of detailed annotations to more than 60 of Rubinstein's finest games against players like Alekhine, Bogolyubov, Capablanca, Euwe, Lasker, Marshall, Nimzowitsch, Schlechter, Spielmann, Tarrasch, Tartakower, and other prominent masters. Grandmaster Razuvaev's copious notes to the games are distinguished by his clear and insightful explanations that are revelatory and highly instructive to keen players of all abilities. 571 pages Hardcover

World Chess Champion Max Euwe, who held the title from 1935-1937, is one of the greatest chess players in history. Much has been written about him, and he authored dozens of books himself. But missing was an outstanding collection of games of this 'efficient, man-eating tiger' as the chess player William Napier once called Euwe.

Max Euwe's Best Games fills this gap. And it couldn't have been written by anyone else than Euwe's successor in Dutch chess – Jan Timman, World Champion finalist and arguably one of the leading chess analysts of our time.

This book offers eighty of Max Euwe's games annotated with great clarity, starting in his early twenties when he worked his way to the world top, up until his late seventies when he was still a force to be reckoned with. It is incredible how high Euwe's level of play was for over fifty years – and how attractive his attacking style was.

Timman made many discoveries in Euwe's best and most famous games but has also unearthed several lesser-known brilliancies. Some interesting paradoxes are addressed along the line. For example, although he was an amateur almost his entire life, Euwe was better versed in opening theory than most of his top-level opponents. Although he was the underdog, he beat the mighty Alexander Alekhine in an epic World Championship Match in 1935. At 52, he could still beat top players like Geller and Najdorf with fantastic attacking play in the Zürich Candidates Tournament. And when he was over seventy, he was still highly dangerous for the new upcoming Dutch generation.

This game collection of an often underrated World Champion, annotated by top grandmaster Jan Timman, is a must-have for anyone interested in World Championship chess.

Over de legendarische Nederlandse schaakwereldkampioen Max Euwe is al veel geschreven, en Euwe produceerde zelf ook tientallen boeken. Maar er was nog geen representatieve verzameling van de beste partijen van deze ‘efficiënte, mensetende tijger’, zoals de Amerikaanse grootmeester William Ewart Napier hem noemde. Max Euwe’s Beste Partijen voorziet in deze lacune. En wie anders had dit boek kunnen schrijven dan Euwe’s opvolger in de Nederlandse schaakwereld – Jan Timman, één van de beste schaakschrijvers van deze tijd. Timman selecteerde tachtig partijen van Euwe. Het is ongelooflijk hoe hoog het niveau was dat Euwe bereikte in de vijftig jaar dat hij actief schaakte, en hoe aantrekkelijk zijn aanvallende speelstijl was. Timman heeft veel nieuws ontdekt in de beste en meest beroemde partijen van Euwe, maar haalt ook een aantal minder bekende briljante partijen voor het voetlicht. Bij zijn analyses komt een aantal interessante paradoxen aan de orde. Zo was Euwe voor het overgrote deel van zijn carrière een amateur, maar wist hij meer van openingstheorie dan vele van zijn tegenstanders op topniveau. Als de underdog onttroonde hij de energieke Alexander Aljechin als wereldkampioen in een epische match in 1935. Op zijn 52ste wist hij nog steeds topspelers als Geller en Najdorf te verslaan met fantastisch aanvalsspel in het beroemde Kandidatentoernooi in Zürich 1953. En toen hij de zeventig al was gepasseerd bleef hij een gevaarlijke opponent voor de jongste generatie Nederlandse schakers. Deze partijenverzameling van een soms onderschatte wereldkampioen, met analyses van topgrootmeester Jan Timman, is een onmisbare aanvulling voor iedereen die is geïnteresseerd in het Nederlandse schaken en in het wereldkampioenschap. Jan Timman, de voormalig nummer twee van de wereldranglijst, is de auteur van vele populaire schaakboeken. Zijn boek Timman’s Titans won de ECF Book of the Year Award in 2017. Zijn recente boeken The Longest Game, Timman’s Triumphs en The Unstoppable American, zijn nu al moderne klassiekers in de schaakliteratuur.

The Pirc Defence and the Modern Defence are two naturally entwined chess openings that are both flexible and rich in strategic and tactical ideas. They feature in the repertoire of great players like Grischuk, Ivanchuk, Nakamura and Carlsen.

In The Perfect Pirc-Modern, Viktor Moskalenko, a renowned propagator of dynamic chess who has championed the Pirc-Modern for many years, explains:

• the ideas and plans that matter
• the various pawn structures and how to handle them
• tricky transpositions: opportunities and risks
• a wealth of new resources for both Black and White.

In this updated version of Moskalenko’s 2013 book of the same name, 33 of the 42 games are new, the structure has been updated in places, and there are fresh ideas on every page.

Moskalenko expertly guides you through this ground-breaking opening book with the enthusiasm, ease and humour that characterize his style.

255 pages

Viktor Moskalenko (1960) is an International Grandmaster and a well-known chess coach. The former Ukraine champion has won many tournaments in Spain, his current home country. For New In Chess, he wrote, among others, The Fabulous Budapest Gambit (2007), Revolutionize Your Chess (2009), The Diamond Dutch (2014), Training with Moska (2017), The Fully-Fledged French (2021) and Trompowsky Attack & London System (2022).

Do you want a simple and practical method to counter Black’s kingside fianchetto defences after 1 d4? A line that takes the initiative from a very early stage and creates difficult practical problems? If so, then The Harry Attack (1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 h4!) is for you.

At first this looks like some sort of joke or, at the very least, a weird outlandish line. Aren’t we all taught to focus on development and control of the centre in the early stages? What’s 3 h4 got to do with that?

Perhaps surprisingly, this is a very difficult line for Black to counter effectively. This applies not just in practical play but also theoretically, where it is far from straightforward for Black even to find a route to equality. And when Black gets it wrong they are often on the receiving end of a very unpleasant miniature.

You may be thinking that surely the best chess engines can show how to counter this line? No! One of the unexpected features of leading engine play is their enthusiasm for shoving the h-pawn up the board and they fully concur that 3 h4! is a very decent move for White. Many leading players have taken the hint and 3 h4 is frequently seen at elite level.

Richard Palliser and Simon Williams (the GingerGM) provide a thorough guide to this fascinating line. They show how to adapt when Black chooses a King’s Indian set-up, a Grünfeld set-up, a Benoni set-up or even plays in Benko style.

The Harry Attack is easy to learn and is perfect for unsettling players steeped in the theory of their favourite Indian defences.  238 pages

 In this book the highly experienced grandmaster Milos Pavlovic outlines a powerful repertoire for White based on 1 d4. The variations are very much based on strategic themes where an understanding of plans is far more important than memorisation of lines and move orders. The author focuses on important positional considerations such as:

•     Which pieces need to be traded off.
•     On which squares will pieces be most effective.
•     What is the best way to develop the initiative.

Nowadays many strong players try to beat opponents by learning sharp lines in the opening. However, it is also possible to do the same by obtaining positions where you have a great understanding of how to conduct the middlegame and thus can consistently outplay your opponent.

In Opening Repertoire: Strategic Play with 1 d4, Milos Pavlovic guides the reader through the chosen variations and carves out a complete repertoire for White. He examines all aspects of play and provides the reader with well-researched, fresh, and innovative analysis. Each annotated game has valuable lessons on the opening and contains instructive commentary on typical middlegame plans.

•     A complete repertoire for White with 1 d4.
•     A question and answer approach provides an excellent study method.
•     279 pages

OUT OF STOCK

Forging New Paths in an Ancient Opening

The Queen’s Gambit Accepted is one of the oldest known openings in chess. It was first mentioned in chess literature in the late 15th century. Over 500 years later, American Grandmaster Max Dlugy demonstrates in this groundbreaking work that the QGA is still a fighting, uncompromising opening that allows Black to play for a win from the very first move. 349 pages

Do you play 1.d4, but feel discouraged by the seemingly limitless number of finely honed defensive systems available to Black? If you’re put off by the idea of having to learn massive amounts of theory just to reach a playable middlegame, then The Richter-Veresov Attack: Qd3 Variation might be just what you’re looking for.

Right away, you’ll be taking your opponents out of their preparation and into your comfort zone. While the Richter-Veresov has developed its own “book” over the years, Eric Fleischman shows you how to bypass a lot of that body of theory, too, with an early deployment of the queen to d3, an idea sometimes known as the Amazon Attack.

Covering a wide range of setups that Black could adopt in response (including French, Caro-Kann, Indian, Benoni, and Dutch formations), the author uses games by international players and examples from his own play to show how experience and a sense of the position count for more than memorized lines in The Richter-Veresov Attack: Qd3 Variation.  283 pages

In this volume, experienced authors Lakdawala & Hansen take the Basmanic plunge and examine some of International Master Michael Basman's most remarkable victories with 1.g4 or 1...g5, along with some of his less successful tries, as well as some games by other occasional adherents, like Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura.
This should not become a cornerstone of your repertoire, but you are guaranteed a bunch of fun and entertaining games. 320 pages

The Russian Boris Spassky was the perfect gentleman. He was a chess genius who became World Champion in 1969. But he was also gracious in defeat after he lost his title to the American Bobby Fischer in 1972 in the Match of the Century. This biography includes fifty of Spassky’s best games, annotated by former Russian champion Alexey Bezgodov, and a biographical sketch of a few dozen pages, written by Dmitry Aleynikov, the Director of the Chess Museum in Moscow. Spassky was born in St. Petersburg in 1937; he moved to France in 1976 and returned to Russia in 2010. On his road to the World Championship, he defeated all his contemporaries convincingly in matches, including Paul Keres, Efim Geller, Mikhail Tal, Bent Larsen and Viktor Korchnoi. He lost his first match for the ultimate title against Tigran Petrosian but won in his second attempt in 1969. With his all-round style, fighting spirit and psychological insights, he could beat anybody anytime and, for example, won at least two games versus six other World Champions: Smyslov, Tal, Petrosian, Fischer, Karpov and Kasparov 279 pages

For almost two centuries the French Defense has been a universally popular opening. Many
authorities have made their contribution to establishing the theory. Thanks to
their efforts, players nowadays can easily make a choice between the many and various
options, whether peaceful or sharp, whether statically or dynamically
orientated. Just as importantly, if not more so, fans of the French worldwide
can today find good options to play both for a win and a draw! All this makes
the French Defense very popular. However, the authors think that many lines
have not been well explained or should be revisited. Some other lines deserve a better reputation. Finally we have also suggested some new approaches. Simply speaking,

the French Defense looks to be inexhaustible and there cannot be enough books

dedicated to it. This book takes a step in the direction of revitalizing our favorite
opening!

The authors have decided to set the book in order from the less to the more popular and complex lines. In the case of the most popular moves 3. e5,

3. Nd2 and
3. Nc3

298 pages

Rudolf Spielmann was one of the strongest chess players in the world in the first half of the 20th century. Following his shared second place at the Carlsbad tournament in 1929 with Capablanca, half a point behind Nimzowitsch, he was considered one of the world's top five. His career spread over four decades and included a host of tournament and match victories, such as defeating Bogoljubov over ten games in 1932.

Often known as the Last Romantic in chess with his predilection for the King's Gambit and Vienna Game and love of sacrifices, he bequeathed a rich legacy of ideas and techniques. These combinational and positional master classes are examined here in 213 instructional games and fragments, organized thematically in a way similar to Grigory Bogdanovich's previous volumes on Bogoljubov.

Detailed commentary is provided on games against leading contemporaries. Opponents in this work include five world champions Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, Euwe, and Botvinnik, as well as Marshall, Janowski, Tarrasch, Tartakower, Nimzowitsch, Reti, Rubinstein, Romanovsky, Bogoljubov, and many others. Bogdanovich's commentary is richly supplemented by that of stars of the epoch and, above all, of Spielmann himself.

The book further contains a biographical sketch and is supplemented by a large number of tournament photographs and portraits. Spielmann's life was ultimately tragic - a lonely death in Sweden aged just 59 as a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany following the demise three years earlier of his sponsor, while several family members failed to escape the Holocaust.

Additional materials in the book include a detailed table of tournaments and matches from his career, as well as a translation of Spielmann's fascinating article dating to 1923 called "From the Sickbed of the King's Gambit". 460 pages

zymon Winawer was a world top-10 player in the 1870s and 1880s, dueling with such titans as Steinitz, Lasker, Anderssen, Marshall, Chigorin, Zukertort, Louis Paulsen, Janowski, Maroczy, Tarrasch and others, and defeating most of the leading players of his time. He won or took prizes in major international tournaments, including Paris 1867 (second, behind Kolisch and above Steinitz), Leipzig 1877 (fourth, behind Paulsen, Anderssen and Zukertort), Paris 1878 (first equal with Zukertort, though he lost the play-off), Berlin 1881 (third equal with Chigorin, behind Blackburne and Zukertort), Vienna 1882 (first equal with Steinitz), and Nuremberg 1883 (first, ahead of Blackburne).
Winawer was a proponent of fighting chess, regularly deploying the King’s Gambit and Ruy Lopez as white, demonstrating winning combinations as well as positional sacrifices and endgame precision. He attacked the castled king with his h-pawn 150 years before Alpha-Zero. He displayed technique using Horowitz bishops and opening the g-file. At the same time, we see in the book that he also played solid positional chess. Moreover, several opening ideas are named after him, including the popular Winawer Variation of the French Defense.
The Warsaw-born player was not a chess professional and never published any annotated games of his own, but some of his concepts, both in the opening and in the middlegame, are still valid in the 21st century. Indeed, many strategic ideas (blockade, exploiting doubled pawns, maneuvering) described in the works of Nimzowitsch and other hypermodernists can be found, in embryonic form, in the games of Winawer played half a century earlier.
In the first half of this biographical work, Warsaw-based chess historian Tomasz Lissowski, who has co-written books on Kieseritzky and Zukertort among others, portrays Winawer’s life and his sporting achievements in the context of the epoch. This book delivers not only a description of the evolution of chess in Poland in the nineteenth century, but a sense through the prism of chess of the political and social history of Poland and the Austro-Hungarian, German and Russian empires in a period of war and upheaval. It is illustrated by many historical photos from the period.
In the second half of this book, International Master Grigory Bogdanovich paints Winawer’s creative portrait, as well as examining the legacy that this ingenious improviser left to chess culture. The book contains in total 132 annotated instructive games and fragments of Winawer and his contemporaries. 301 pages

The English Defence (1 d4 e6 2 c4 b6) is a dynamic, counter-attacking line, initially investigated by English grandmasters. Black aims to set White difficult problems to solve at the very earliest stage of the game. Black’s play is provocative – aiming to lure White into establishing a big pawn centre. This is a risky strategy as White falls behind in development and Black switfly becomes very active. However, if White’s response is more circumspect then Black can often manoeuvre into favourable structures reminiscent of positions arising from the Nimzo-Indian Defence, the Queen’s Indian Defence or even the Dutch.

José González provides an excellent analysis of this complex opening and carves out a powerful repertoire for Black covering all lines after 1 d4. It is possible for White to avoid the "English battle" by playing either 2 Nf3 or even 2 e4 (a rare move for 1 d4 players but seen occasionally). Gonzalez champions an aggressive variant of the Dutch against 2 Nf3 and outlines a simple but effective French Defence repertoire to counter 2 e4.

• A complete repertoire for Black to counter 1 d4.
• The question and answer approach provides an excellent study method.   318 pages

The Sicilian Defence is the most attractive and most complicated opening in chess. If you don't play the Sicilian with White or Black, you miss much of the beauty and the challenges our royal game offers. For White 1.e4 players, building a repertoire against 1...c5 should be their priority.

Croatian top grandmaster Ivan Saric is one of today's greatest Sicilian experts. He plays 1.e4 with White and the Najdorf with Black! With The Open Sicilian, based on his highly acclaimed Chessable course, he has managed something impressive: a watertight repertoire against the Sicilian of just over 400 pages. But reading this one volume, your knowledge of this opening and chess, in general, will make a spectacular jump.

The Open Sicilian is not a phonebook crammed with computer lines but a textbook full of 21st-century chess wisdom. Saric covers the entire range of Sicilians, from obscure sidelines to the main lines: the Najdorf, the Taimanov, the Rauzer, the Kan, the Sveshnikov, and the various Dragons. His approach, firmly based on the ideas of the English Attack, is very ambitious, and he supports his claims with deep analysis and illuminating and elaborate verbal explanation.

Saric has written a book that will serve as a standard work for many years. He offers you the content to be fully armoured against all the intricacies of all the topical Sicilian lines.

Ivan Saric (1990) is a Croatian chess player who became an International Master at 17 and a Grandmaster at 18. He became U18 European Champion in 2007, U18 World Champion in 2008, and won the European Individual title in 2018. Saric beat Magnus Carlsen for his country at the 2014 Olympiad in Tromsø.

434 pages

The Scotch Game is a solid opening that has been tried and tested in practice by some of the strongest chessplayers in the world for more than two centuries. The idea behind the Scotch Game is simple and easily understandable. White eliminates – in a purely mechanical fashion – Black’s e5-pawn which initially impedes his ambition to dominate in the center.

This is very appealing for White, as he controls the direction of the struggle’s development, while Black can only try to keep pace. Furthermore, there are relatively simple schemes in the white repertoire in which it is enough to remember the main plans of both sides and typical maneuvers.

This is the second edition of Vladimir Barsky’s book that first appeared in 2009. The new edition consists of seven chapters dealing with the core ideas and variations of the Scotch, supplemented by 79 Illustrative Games. The authors not only present detailed analysis of all lines but are also careful to discuss the ideas behind the opening. If you already play the Scotch, you need this book. If you don’t, find out what you have been missing.  224 pages

The Four Knights Variation is a variation of the Sicilian Defense that most often occurs after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6. It’s a good choice for all types of players – whether you’re an aggressive player who wants to attack your opponents or a more defensive player who prefers a slow and positional game, the Four Knights Variation is the right choice for you.

Learning to play the Four Knights Variation of the Sicilian Defense is not only beneficial for adding a powerful opening to your repertoire but can also improve your general chess understanding and knowledge. By studying this opening, players can learn about important concepts such as pawn structures, piece activity, and the importance of controling the center. Furthermore, the Four Knights Variation often leads to complex and tactical positions, which can help players improve their calculation skills and ability to recognize key tactical patterns on the board. All in all, mastering this opening can help players become more well-rounded chess players. 223 pages

OUT OF STOCK

Nikola Sedlak is a renowned chess player known for his expertise in the London System. He is a grandmaster from Serbia who has been considered one of the strongest players in the country for many years. Sedlak is also a well-known chess trainer and author, who wrote several books on the London System and other chess openings.

In front of you is his latest masterpiece on the London System. This comprehensive guide covers all aspects of the London System and provides a detailed analysis of the various lines and variations that may arise from this opening. We believe that Sedlak’s book is a must-have for any chess player who wants to improve his understanding and expertise in the London System.

One of the key assets of Sedlak’s book is the depth of analysis. Sedlak provides an in-depth look at the theoretical foundations of the London System, as well as the key strategic and tactical ideas of the opening. It also covers a wide range of possible variations, giving readers a thorough understanding of the different options that are available to them. Another important aspect of Sedlak’s book is the clarity of explanation. Sedlak’s writing is easy to understand and he provides clear examples to illustrate key ideas. His book is suitable for players of all levels, from beginners to experienced players looking to add the London System to their repertoire. 223 pages

Vinay Bhat rose through the ranks of American chess in the 1990s and 2000s, overcoming plateaus, competitive challenges, and academic and professional commitments, before achieving the highest title in chess. Follow Vinay’s path to improvement and the struggles he had to go through, to carve out your own path to improvement and achieve your chess goals.

How I Became a Chess Grandmaster is a personal story that entertains as it instructs. With numerous photographs and anecdotes, you can follow the inspirational rise of a young player from novice to Grandmaster.

Vinay Bhat became a National Master at the age of 10 and an International Master at 15 – at the time the youngest American IM since Bobby Fischer. He later went on to gain the ultimate title of Grandmaster in his mid-twenties. 344 pages

Playing for a win with ...b6 by Semko Semkov. The author proposes a full repertoire against 1.d4 and 1.c4, which is theoretically sound and leads to sharp, strategically unbalanced positions. It is based on the so-called English Defence 1.d4 e6 2.c4 b6 or 1.c4 b6. A great deal of the book is devoted to White's tries to deviate from theoretical dispute and transfer the game into the Queen's Indian with g3. 236 pages

Drawing on new research, this biography of William Steinitz (1836–1900), the first World Chess Champion, covers his early life and career, with a fully-sourced collection of his known games until he left London in 1882. A portrait of mid-Victorian British chess is provided, including a history of the famous Simpson’s Divan.

Born to a poor Jewish family in Prague, Steinitz studied in Vienna, where his career really began, before moving to London in 1862, bent on conquering the chess world. During the next 20 years, he became its strongest and most innovative player, as well as an influential writer on the game. A foreigner with a quarrelsome nature, he suffered mockery and discrimination from British amateur players and journalists, which eventually drove him to immigrate to America. The final chapters cover his subsequent visits to England and the last three tournaments he played there. 515 pages - A4 Size

The Modern Defense has been popular for decades. However, within the purview of this defense, there is a system that challenges White right from the get-go. The brainchild of Georgian grandmaster Bukhuti Gurgenidze, Black plays 1...g6 and follows with a timely ...c6 and ...d5. Occasionally classified as part of the Caro-Kann, it draws battle lines immediately.

The move 1...g6 in general is an aggressive approach, throwing down the gauntlet from the very first move. This is why in some lines, even if the reader finds that the engine assesses a position in White’s favor, one should not be put off.

This book, the first one dedicated to the Modern Gurgenidze in many years, consists of 10 theoretical Chapters and 31 sample games. Jaan carefully explains how Black’s plans may change depending on White’s move order, when exactly we should play ...c7-c6 followed by ...d7-d5 (Chapters 1-5) and when we would be better off with ...d7-d6 and ...e7-e5 (Chapters 6-10). You will be treated to Jaan’s insights on Hippo, Dutch, English, King’s Indian and even 1.b3, all through the eyes of Gurgenidze system. – Grandmaster Alex Shabalov in his Foreword.

The Modern Gurgenidze has figured prominently in Jaan Ehlvest’s repertoire as Black for many years. He now shares his expertise and experience in this provocative defense. If you want to play for a draw, this book is not for you. But if you want to play for the full point, this counterpunching defense may be just what you are looking for.

About the Author:

Jaan Ehlvest is a grandmaster from Tallinn, Estonia. He won the 1980 USSR Junior Chess Championship when he was 18 and in 1983, the European Junior Championship. He was champion of Estonia in 1986 and was a member of the gold medal-winning Soviet Union team at the 28th Chess Olympiad in Thessaloniki 1988. He played for Estonia in the Chess Olympiads of 1992-2004. This is his first book for Russell Enterprises. 240 pages

With this work, the author aims to illustrate the modern ideas of the Italian Opening to players at a medium level. It deals with positions based on White's slow plan, i.e. if he chooses a calm approach characterized by positional ideas. The author does not attempt to offer the reader a complete repertoire, but rather to explain the ideas of the emerging middlegame positions. The material primarily includes the systems 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.c3 h6 6.0-0 d6 7.Re1 a6 8.a4 Ba7 9.Nbd2 0-0 10.h3 and 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d3 Bc5 5.c3 d6 6.0-0 0-0 7.h3 h6 8.Re1 a5, where especially the latter has gained enormous popularity in current practice