The good news about endgames is:

there are relatively few endings you should know by heart

once you know these endings, that's it. Your knowledge never goes out of date!

The bad news is that, all the same, the endgame technique of most players is deficient. Modern time-controls make matters worse: there is simply not enough time to delve deep into the position.

Jesus de la Vila debunks the myth that endgame theory is complex and he teaches you to steer the game into a position you are familia...

All through his career Jan Timman has been captivated by the mystery and splendour of endgame studies. Even during his most successful and busy years as a world-class player, Timman continued to compose studies and admire those of others. For him, there has never been any doubt that his journeys in this magical world helped him to grow as a player.

In this fascinating book, first published in 2011, Timman has collected studies by other composers and explains in his lucid style how they inspir...

Zwischenzug! is the first-ever comprehensive guide to the chess tactic also known as the intermediate move, or intermezzo. This exciting manoeuvre can catch opponents off guard because it is against the expected run of play. You will learn how to spot Zwischenzugs, when to look out for them, and how to set them up in your games.

The authors have studied thousands of games and have identified the patterns that appear frequently in practical play. The book categorizes the different types of Zwi...

Have you ever wondered why strong chess players immediately grasp what is happening in complex positions? The secret is pawn structures. The pawn structure dictates the game's flow, and different structures require distinct approaches. You can improve your game by studying a large variety of pawn structures and the Hidden Laws of Chess.

IM Nick Maatman invented the Hidden Laws of Chess as an instructional tool to help his students bridge the gap between the basic understanding of a club playe...

Jan Timman is one of the greatest chess players never to win the world title. For many years ‘the Best of the West’ belonged to the chess elite, collecting quite a few super tournament victories. Three times Timman was a Candidate for the World Championship and his peak in the world rankings was second place, in 1982.

For this definitive collection, Timman has revisited his career and subjected his finest efforts to fresh analysis supported by modern technology. The result is startling an...

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. Peter...

In this book I will guide you through the basics of understanding the board, the pieces, the rules, and the objective of the game. I will cover basic strategy and tactics that will make you a better player but presented in simple to the point language and terminology. The book is graced with lots of pictures, illustrations, and art. If you are new to chess, you should start with lessons 1. I will cover the board, chess pieces, rules, notation, basic mates, and elementary tactics. It then take...

In Black and White is probably the most honest autobiography ever published by a chess grandmaster. The Dutchman, born in 1956, covers his rise to the chess elite, his insecurities, and the difficulties he encountered.

The highlight of his career was his qualification for the Candidates Matches, only four steps away from the World Championship. He won a game but lost the match against Gata Kamsky. The Dutch edition was published in 2011 and has reached cult status. It was very well received b...

Improve Your Chess Now is a modern chess classic and one of the most inspiring chess improvement manuals. Adult improvers frequently name this book as one of their primary sources in the popular Perpetual Chess Podcast of Ben Johnson.

The author is an American grandmaster now living in Norway. With infectious enthusiasm, Tisdall covers a wide range of topics, including visualization and calculation, pattern recognition, the psychological aspects of chess, the art of defence and the wisdom of ...