The positions arising from the Open Spanish contain ideas so different from the usual Ruy Lopez that I sometimes wonder whether it should really be considered part of it at all.

A Complete Repertoire for White

This second volume on the Ruy Lopez consists of two parts. In the first part I focus on modern systems with …Bc5, attempting to dissect both the Archangelsk and Moller Variations. These two variations have quite a rich history but in 2020 there have been several developments. If I had to name one person that contributed the most to the developments in those lines it is, without a doubt, Fabiano Caruana.

A Complete Repertoire for White

Those words of wisdom were given to me by one of my first coaches when I was a seven-year-old kid in Vietnam. As I made my way into the world’s top forty, I have realized that my coach’s statement could not be more accurate. Throughout my professional career of more than 20 years competing in strong tournaments all over the world, the Ruy Lopez has appeared countless times in my practice with both colors. The main challenge in studying this fascinating opening, in my humble opinion, is to dissect the vast amount of options and absorb the most relevant information for your game. In the absence of an experienced coach who can guide you through those steps, a chess player may spend weeks studying the Ruy Lopez, yet he or she may not fully understand the strategic ideas behind long variations.

A Straightforward Guide for Black and White

The Berlin Defence has been a highly popular opening in top level chess ever since Vladimir Kramnik famously used it in the 2000 World Championship match to wrest the title from Garry Kasparov. Club players often hesitate to include ‘the Berlin’ in their repertoire because they see the typical Berlin Wall endgame as complex and daunting

This book’s journey began on the first day of January 2018 when one of my New Year resolutions was to write a chess book. The journey has been very long, but certainly fun, and has in many ways made me understand myself better, both as a person and as a chess player!

Chess Miniatures Vol. 3

The Ruy Lopez Main Lines, arise (with a few exceptions for move order and such) after 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 a6 4 Ba4 Nf6 5 0-0. The Ruy Lopez, or Spanish Opening if you like, is one of the oldest openings, named after a Spanish priest who first played it back in the 16th century.

It’s major news when a legendary player reveals his opening secrets. And when he has rarely written about his games or preparation methods, and was famous for meticulous, ahead-of-his-time opening analysis, it makes it a true publishing event.

The St. Petersburg grandmaster and coach Solozhenkin reveals the secrets of one of the most complex system of the Ruy Lopez - the Zaitsev Variation. It offers an optimal balance between safety and possibilities of imposing tangled fight.
Mastering the Zaitsev Variation will improve the reader's understanding of chess in general since he would need good orientation in double-edged middlegames, but also fair endgame play. The book offers a complete Black repertoire, starting from 3...a6, and going up to the super-trendy Svidler Variation.

Mar del Plata I

The King’s Indian Defence is one of Black’s most dynamic and aggressive responses to 1.d4. A favourite weapon of both Fischer and Kasparov, it remains a popular choice at all levels of play.

Grandmaster Repertoire 14

The French Defence is one of the most popular and reliable responses to 1.e4. Black invites his opponent to gain space in the centre, with the intention of undermining the enemy position and launching a counterattack. Although the amount of theory has expanded in recent years, the French often leads to positions where positional and strategic understanding prove more relevant than long sequences of computer-generated moves.

Grandmaster Repertoire 14 – The French Defence 1 introduces the Winawer Variation after the opening moves 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4, and provides expert recommendations against all of White’s major possibilities, with the exception of the most critical 7.Qg4 line which will receive special coverage in Volume Two of the series. Volume Three will deal with the Tarrasch, Advance and all of White’s other options.

The Open Spanish is one of Black’s most direct methods of fighting against the Ruy Lopez. Instead of subjecting himself to the so-called “Spanish torture” of the Closed Ruy Lopez, Black boldly captures the e4-pawn and provokes an early confrontation.

Grandmaster Repertoire 13 - The Open Spanish provides a complete repertoire for Black after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6, based on the Open Variation which occurs after 5.0-0 Nxe4. Black’s system is built on the principles of fast and active development, and fighting for the initiative whenever the opportunity arises.

Book I: Black Avoids 3...a6

Today's openings are reruns of an old sitcom that we have all seen a hundred times before, while for players in the past, life on the chess board was wild, unexplored territory. Learning the details of that gigantic entity, the Ruy Lopez (from either side), is on par with the time that hateful 7th-grade teacher made us memorize the capital cities of every country in the world--in alphabetical order!