Mayhem in the Morra

The Slav Defense is currently the most popular closed opening, appearing in the opening repertoire of the overwhelming majority of top class grandmasters. A competitive chess player playing 1.d4 faces the opening in almost every tournament, and for Black it can be used in just about every second game.

In this book Richard Palliser provides in-depth coverage of three of the most dangerous attacking set-ups available to White: the Colle-Zukertort, the Barry, and the 150 attacks. In recent years these three opening weapons have considerably gained in popularity, especially at club level, and it's easy to see why.

The French is one of Black's soundest defences to 1 e4 and is very popular at all levels of chess. Club players enjoy its super-solid structure, while at the top it's played by famous grandmasters such as Vishy Anand and the young Russian star Alexander Morozevich.

Chess Camp is a new training system for beginning chessplayers, and for the parents and coaches who teach them.

In this highly-acclaimed and popular series, John Watson helps chess-players achieve a more holistic and insightful view of the openings. He explains not only the ideas and strategies behind specific openings, but also the interconnections of chess openings taken as a whole. By presenting the common threads that underlie opening play, Watson provides a permanent basis for playing openings of any type.

The Schliemann Defense is one of the most difficult and dangerous defenses in chess that Black has available. It starts with 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 !!!!

This is not considered a Gambit because it would be useless for White to take the pawn with 4. exf5. Passive Defense is likely to give White a bad game. So, White must counter with 4. Nc3.

There are now two main branches. This book was previously published as a two volume work. However, most players of the Schliemann prefer the second and more risky line, so the two volumes have been combined into one book here.

This is an update with the latest new games and analysis on the two main branches of the Schliemann Defense. These branches arise after the moves 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 4. Nc3 fxe4 5. Nxe4. The more conservative move favored by most strong players was 5. …. Nf6. The more dangerous and risky line is 5. …. d5, allowing 6. Nxe5 dxe4 7. Nxc6 Qg5. This was thought to have been refuted but now grandmasters and others have proven that it is perfectly playable.

The Frankenstein–Dracula Variation (1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Nxe4!?) of the Vienna Game is a monstrous thicket of complications which still have not been fully explored. The opening leads to fascinating positions which will bring enjoyment both in tournament and correspondence play. Although some theorists have treated the variation as dead and buried, experiments have managed to bring the monster variation back to life for Black, and it can now be considered fully playable.

Henry Bird's 1.f4 has become the choice of many players who wish to avoid the voluminous theory surrounding 1.e4, 1.d4 and even 1.c4. If Black plays passively then he is likely to find himself in an inferior line, especially if he allows a reversed Dutch defense. But there is an exciting alternative to the main lines - the From Gambit! With l...e5 Black makes it clear that he is willing to fight. The lines which arise often involve forced piece sacrifices for both sides, and knowledge of the middlegame ideas is critical.