The first couple of chapters are stuffed with names that will become baffling in the next two or three generations. But you can make sense of the story nonetheless.
A fictional story about a former chess champion doesn’t come along that often. I was never a fan of the game myself but the opening chapters mercifully don’t occupy themselves unduly with the chess moves that would be confusing to someone who isn’t an aficionado. Nolan Sawyer is a chess wizard who is cynical of his new status as a chess sex symbol. Can you blame him? Who would even consider chess as something sexy? But he’s dark, handsome, brooding as well as a gifted grandmaster so he gets slapped with the title.
But the opening chapters mainly focus on Mallory Greenleaf, a girl nervously dipping her toe back into the chess ring after years of leaving it. It’s a mystery WHY she left the game in the first place. She was truly gifted, beating people several years older than she. But their first encounter slowly works its way from fumbling to charged.
Then we get a tiny insight into Nolan’s character. Unfortunately, the author tells rather than shows Nolan’s character. Apparently, he has a temper like a young John MeEnroe: volatile, violent and unpredictable. Definitely not what you’d expect at the chess table. So when he’s pitted against Mallory, you expect an explosion.
But the author surprises. It’s not the first surprise in these chapters but it’s definitely a shock. Now I want to know what happens next. I want more information. I want a rematch. This novel promises to be an exciting gambit.
A fictional story about a former chess champion doesn’t come along that often. I was never a fan of the game myself but the opening chapters mercifully don’t occupy themselves unduly with the chess moves that would be confusing to someone who isn’t an aficionado. Nolan Sawyer is a chess wizard who is cynical of his new status as a chess sex symbol. Can you blame him? Who would even consider chess as something sexy? But he’s dark, handsome, brooding as well as a gifted grandmaster so he gets slapped with the title.
But the opening chapters mainly focus on Mallory Greenleaf, a girl nervously dipping her toe back into the chess ring after years of leaving it. It’s a mystery WHY she left the game in the first place. She was truly gifted, beating people several years older than she. But their first encounter slowly works its way from fumbling to charged.
Then we get a tiny insight into Nolan’s character. Unfortunately, the author tells rather than shows Nolan’s character. Apparently, he has a temper like a young John MeEnroe: volatile, violent and unpredictable. Definitely not what you’d expect at the chess table. So when he’s pitted against Mallory, you expect an explosion.
But the author surprises. It’s not the first surprise in these chapters but it’s definitely a shock. Now I want to know what happens next. I want more information. I want a rematch. This novel promises to be an exciting gambit.