Publishing Schedule for the next six months

Do you know what you will be doing for the next six months? We do. The real question will be if we can do everything as fast as we want. For example: Boris Gelfand constantly gets all these annoying tournament invitations that distracts him from the book…

We do not really have dates for anything else than the Dragon books, published next, but I can give a few informal updates.

The next volume on 1.e4 vs the Sicilian is only a few weeks from going to the printer. It could theoretically be out late October. The Razuvaev book is far progressed as well. But most importantly, John has made great progress on the Playing 1.e4 books. I think the first one will be out in November and the second not long after. We considered publishing them together, but it did not really make a lot of sense to wait with one, while the other one is finalised. So, they will be out a few months apart.

Gawain Jones The Dragon Volume 1 9 September 2015
Gawain Jones The Dragon Volume 2 9 September 2015
John Shaw Playing 1.e4 – Caro-Kann, 1…e5 & Minor Lines Autumn
Yuri Razuvaev Key Concepts of Gambit Play Autumn
Parimarjan Negi GM Rep – 1.e4 vs The Sicilian II Autumn
GERMAN Vom GM zur Top Ten – Judit Polgar 2 Autumn
Vassilios Kotronias GM6A – Beating the Anti-Sicilians Autumn
Nikos Ntirlis Playing 1.e4 e5 – A Classical Repertoire Winter
Ftacnik (Aagaard) GM6B – The Najdorf Winter
Victor Mikhalevski GM Rep 19 – Beating Minor Openings Winter
Boris Avrukh GM Repertoire 1B – 1.d4 The Queen’s Gambit Winter
GERMAN Dame am Brett – Judit Polgar 3 Winter
John Shaw Playing 1.e4 – Sicilian & French Winter
Tibor Karolyi Mikhail Tal’s best games 3 – The Invincible Winter
Boris Gelfand Dynamic Decision Making in Chess Winter
Vassilios Kotronias King’s Indian – Volume 4 Winter
Vassilios Kotronias King’s Indian – Volume 5 Winter

 

145 thoughts on “Publishing Schedule for the next six months”

  1. What’s the correlation between kotronias’s anti sicilian and hours c3 work for informator ?

    Looking forward to gelfands dynamic book.

  2. Great line-up s usual!! Looking forward to practically all these books :-). Just out of curiosity: how is Thinking inside the Box progressing?

  3. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    ### Regarding Ftacnik (Aagaard) GM6B – The Najdorf 🙂 ###

    I just hope that stubbornness shall abandon your office and that you will cover …e5 lines for black versus Be2 and Be3 lines!

    If you can’t do it, pay someone to write those two damn chapters!!!

    Only then you will target ALL Black players, not alone Scheweningers 🙂

  4. @LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    6…e5 WAS covered against 6.Be3. I agree it would be nice to cover 6…e5 against 6.Be2 & 6.f4, but there would be no obligation for them to do this. If they did so they should charge significantly more as they are in effect producing two books for the price of one.

  5. Any movements on the bets John dismissed in the January publishing update Negi would finish his e4 series before he did? 🙂

    Joking aside, phenomenal list – will buy every English language book on it, and great books are worth waiting for.

  6. Great to see the Polgar books in German. As in my head there was no more books in German from quality I thought I had to buy #2 and #3 in English and a mixed series. All in one language looks better in my board. 🙂

  7. @franck steenbekkers
    I bet GM Negi will cover 9. Bc4 and 12. Kb1 main line against the Dragon, where trully white is better and if Topalov variation, than the main line 13. Nd5 – and where GM Jones gives a compensation for the sacrificed pawn for Black, GM Negi will state that the compensation is not enough for equality.
    Whereas GM Shaw will most probably recommend 9.0-0-0 variation (rather not 9. g4 and for sure not 9. Bc4) and will try to find holes in GM Jones analysis of 12. Bd4 Bxd4 main line.
    And then you can check them all with the engine to see who is right. Interesting stuff ahead!

  8. @Ray
    Me too. The Slav (And the Semi Slav) is a real pain 🙁 I can’t find a decent solution other than trying new and rare lines each times to sort of surprise my opponent. Hopefully Avrukh has a better solution

  9. I am wondering will be Avrukhs 1B a book with a second Choice against d4 d5 c4 e6 (besides the catalan) or a repertoire for black. The latter would be nice.

  10. @Jacob Aagaard
    I’ve just noticed that:
    Vassilios Kotronias GM6A – Beating the Anti-Sicilians
    Ftacnik (Aagaard) GM6B – The Najdorf
    Does it mean that the BAS book is a repertoire book focused on Najdorf players mainly and the book by Ftacnik won’t cover any anti-sicilians?

  11. @Dmitry
    Ntirlis will cover 1…e5 form Black’s perspective.
    Mikhalevski will give a number of options for Black against everything but 1.d4 and 1.e4, so they fit players of the various main 1.d4 openings, or at least fit into their repertoires. The sibling is GM11.

  12. For GM Repertoire 1B, will Avrukh be covering variations from 1.d4 d5 move order like Queen’s Gambit Accepted, Slav, etc?

    Also for Kotronias on the KID, what variations are Volumes 4 and 5 about?

  13. @RaidRaptors

    Yes I am intrigued what VK will recommend in the Saemisch, Averbakh & 4PA in the KID.
    I kind of hope he will try and rejuvenate the …e5 line in the Saemisch, as I know he plays this often. Would like to see …Na6 in the Averbakh and 4PA. If nothing else because is different to what Vigirito recommended in his awesome 2 volume KID series by that other publishing company.

  14. @RaidRaptors

    I think John said volume 4 is on other classical lines, such as the Petrosian, Gligoric & Makagonov etc.

    Volume 5 (The one I am really looking forward to ?) will cover Saemisvh, Averbakh, 4PA and minor lines I assume?

  15. Regarding the KID. I do not think there will be long between Volume 4 and 5 coming out – and both of them are not too far into the future either… Maybe 4-6 months!? We will start working on the editing very soon. First we need to finish the Anti-Sicilians…

  16. Hi Jacob/John

    What is the reply to the excellent question from Pawndemic above – hopefully some good news for a QGD book for Black – or at least from the White side

    Pawndemic:
    September 6th, 2015 at 09:48 | #18 Reply | Quote I am wondering will be Avrukhs 1B a book with a second Choice against d4 d5 c4 e6 (besides the catalan) or a repertoire for black. The latter would be nice.

  17. I would love seeing ‘ Playing 1.d4 d5- A Cassical Repertoire’ by Nikos. I would hope that there will be also his ideas against lesser variiations after 1.d4 d5 and the Tartakower as his main variation (I don’t like the Tarrasch).
    OK, Nikos?
    Can’t wait for your ‘Playing 1.e4 e5-book’!

  18. @Jacob Aagaard
    I’m not sure, is QGD the same as what we call ‘ortodox defense’ in spanish? 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Cc3 Cf6 4. Ag5 Ae7? Or does it include the Tarrasch, the Cambridge-Spring, the Viena, etc?

    One would think it is the latter (as in spanish QGD only means 1. d4 d5 2.c4 e6 where no transposition into other defenses, ie stonewall, semieslav, etc, is made), but then, which one of the pletora of valid responses is the one selected?

    Anyway I think your offer on those 1. d4 d5 positions is already exceptional (Tarrasch, Slav and Semislav), I think it is way more important to fill the gap in the Nf6 & e6 schemes.

  19. @Gollum
    No it does not include everything. And the Nimzo is a different story and I agree, more important. We have some real progress, but not enough to make a statement. It has been a jinxed project with three authors failing tobdeliver in the past…

  20. @Jacob Aagaard
    May I ask why they failed to deliver? Personal reasons or chess related problems (the variations didn’t stand the test of the time)? In the latter case I can give some advice as I failed to prove any edge against the nimzo in my correspondence chess experience and I’m quite sure black is ok in all variations today.
    Regards

  21. @Jacob Aagaard
    What a pity…the Nimzo is really one of the most interesting variation…for many years I though “I play 4 Qc2 or 4 e3 and I’m of course a little better” while now I think “I play 4 Qc2 or 4 e3 and I hope not to be already worse”.

  22. @Richard Martin

    I think the team have hinted the Ruy Lopez for White will be covered by Negi in the 5th Volume of his 1.e4 GM Rep series?

    Maybe I’m wrong Im sure one of the guys will correct me if so.

  23. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    ### Nikos on Breyer book ###

    Hey Nikos,

    You should check upcoming DVD “The Ruy Lopez Breyer Variation” by Pavel Eljanov, published by Chessbase 🙂

  24. Jacob Aagaard :
    Regarding the KID. I do not think there will be long between Volume 4 and 5 coming out – and both of them are not too far into the future either… Maybe 4-6 months!? We will start working on the editing very soon. First we need to finish the Anti-Sicilians…

    Is the Anti Sicilian book quite near then? Before Christmas maybe

  25. Great work by Gelfand. Really enjoying his Positional Decision Making in Chess book and look forward to seeing a preview of his upcoming Dynamic Decision Making….book when available. Kotronias did a nice job on the King’s Indian so far. I’m glad it was broken down into small chapers and separate volumes.

  26. Early d4 is more aggresive than Marins repertoire.

    1.c4, c5 2.Nf3, Nf6 3.Nc3, Nc6 4.d4, cxd4 5.Nxd4, e6 6.g3, Qb6 7.Ndb5

    1.c4, c5 2.Nf3, Nf6 3.Nc3, d5 4.cxd5, Nxd5 5.e4, Nb4 6.Bc4

    1.c4, e6 2.Nc3, Nf6 3.e4

    1.c4, e5 2.Nc3, Nf6 3.Nf3, Nc6 4.g3, Bb4 5.Bg2, 0-0 6.0-0, e4 7.Ng5, Bxc3 8.bxc3, Re8 9.f3

    More of this kind of stuff.

  27. @The Doctor

    Yeah I see what you’re saying I mean I have played White against players much higher rates with me in the Acc Dragon and they have struggled to win. White remains solid and gets s good position without taking many risks, unlike other openings I could mention.

  28. New month – new info? I’m curious when Playing 1.e4 – Caro-Kann, 1…e5 & Minor Lines, GM Rep – 1.e4 vs The Sicilian II and GM6A – Beating the Anti-Sicilians will be released. Excerpts of them would be much appreciated too.

  29. @AJZ
    Been busy organising the Nigel Short seminar.

    John is getting to the end of Playing 1.e4 Volume 1. He is distracted for the moment with proof reading on 1.e4 vs. the Sicilian II, which will go to the printer next week. The Anti-Sicilian is in the final stages of editing as well.

  30. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    ### Nikos on Playing 1…. e5 ###

    What are you planning against Paulsen’s Attack in Centre Game?

    1.e4 e5
    2.d4 exd4
    3.Qxd4 Nc6
    4.Qe3 Nf6
    5.e5!?

    Bologan gives in his book:

    5…. Ng4
    6.Qe4 Ngxe5
    7.f4 d5
    8.Qe2 Bg4
    9.Nf3 Bc5

    But is this really enough for Black??? This might be good alternative for White!

  31. @LE BRUIT QUI COURT: “But is this really enough for Black??? This might be good alternative for White!”

    Out of all White’s tries against 1..e5, THIS is the one you’re worried about??
    I would literally PAY my opponent’s to play this line. Black is already better on move nine! 🙂
    Komodo gives a “-.69” edge to Black after 9…Bc5.

  32. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    @Jacob Aagaard
    Yeah guys, but when you face it over the board, and being an amateur like me, you have doubts when you calculate giving a piece for attack.

    But yes, Black should win it 🙂

  33. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    By the way, an era of 1.e4 e5 books for Black has come….

    Even Everyman joined the race with upcoming “Opening Repertoire: The Open Games with Black” by Martin Lokander (December 31, 2015).

    I’m waiting for Bologan’s new book on Spanish, an of course Nikos’ book 🙂

  34. @Jacob Aagaard
    My black repertoire vs 1.e4 consists of accelerated dragon, classical (rauzer) and kalashnikov. Guess this will be the first time I buy a white repertoire book because I play the line as black 🙂

  35. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    Dear Jacob,

    Which month you’ll publish:

    * * * Nikos Ntirlis: PLAYING 1.e4 e5 – A CLASSICAL REPERTOIRE

    * * * Victor Mikhalevski: GRANDMASTER REPERTOIRE 19 – BEATING MINOR OPENINGS

    I can’t wait for them!

  36. I was able to score a quick win in ICCF Word Cup 21 preliminary round in a line that is labeled as D2 in Chapter 12 of Dragon Vol. 2:

    1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 g6
    6.Be3 Bg7 7.Be2 O-O 8.Qd2 Nc6 9.O-O-O Ng4 10.Bxg4 Bxg4
    11.f3 Bd7 12.Nxc6 bxc6 13.Bd4 f6 14.Be3 Qa5 15.h4 Rfb8
    16.h5 gxh5 17.b3 Qa3+ 18.Kb1 a5 19.Bh6 Bxh6 20.Qxh6 Be8
    21.Rh3 a4 22.f4 h4 23.Qxh4 h5 24.Qg3+ Kf8 25.e5 axb3
    26.cxb3 Bf7 27.exf6 exf6 28.f5 Bxb3 29.Qxd6+ Qxd6 30.Rxd6 Bd5+
    31.Ka1 Ke7 32.Rxd5 cxd5 33.Nxd5+ Kf7 34.Rxh5 Kg7 35.Rh4 Ra5
    36.Rb4 Rxb4 37.Nxb4 Rxf5 0-1

  37. The Negi book is still not on the coming soon list. I guess it wont be out this month?! Are there any news on that subject?

  38. The DOC :
    The Negi book is still not on the coming soon list. I guess it wont be out this month?! Are there any news on that subject?

    The Negi book will appear on the Coming Soon list very soon – as in later today. Prediction: excerpt later this week, and publication in November.

  39. @John Shaw
    Great news! Can’t wait to compare Negi and Jones takes on the Dragon.
    Will you publish Playing 1.e4 – Caro-Kann, 1…e5 & Minor Lines and Beating the Anti-Sicilians in 2015 too?

  40. It would be interesting to publish “playing the grunfeld” or “playing the modern benoni” for black, with anti-grunfeld and anti-benoni lines

  41. I’m planning on buying “The Spanish Main Road” by Solozhenkin to pair up with The “Open Games For Black by Lysyj/Ovetchkin”, and Nikos work as well when it’s ready.

    Can someone advise on the level of “Bologan’s Black Weapons in the Open Games” work?
    This will be completed soon as well with a second volume on Spanish (Breyer + another system as well I think).

    Thanks for the help.

  42. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    Capodoglio :
    Can someone advise on the level of “Bologan’s Black Weapons in the Open Games” work?

    Hi man 🙂

    I have Bologan’s book for a year! It’s outstanding repertoire which made other publishers very envy 🙂

  43. Thank you, heard varied opinions here and there, since Bologan sometimes do some excellent work, sometimes less so.
    Then I guess I’ll add his books as well, more options is always good.

  44. Capodoglio :
    Can someone advise on the level of “Bologan’s Black Weapons in the Open Games” work?

    Bologan’s book is great. One can have different opinion on the innovative layout, but the content is good. It contains just the right amount of analysis for a 2000 player. His repertoire is very aggressive. He tries to create winning chances especially against secondary lines. At the same time he doesn’t recommend rubbish.
    Nikos will have to bring his A game to beat Bologan’s book.

  45. Well, I’m used to GM Rep, not sure a 2000 repertoire would cut it!
    Keep in mind I’m already in possess of Lysyj and Marin (though a bit too solid/outdated).

  46. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    Jacob Aagaard :
    @Andre
    I expect him to bring his AAA game…

    When exactly? Before Christmas? How come that Niko’s doesn’t comments anything? We are waiting for him 🙂

    On the other hand, we expect the ultimate for him cause Bologan made the paramount 🙂

  47. The Serious Kid

    @LE BRUIT QUI COURT
    He has commented occasionally. For example, he mentions that he has an interesting surprise in the exchange variation in the main lines with 5…Bg4, but he’s keeping the rest secret. He also mentioned that he’ll recommend the Breyer. That’s all I really know.

  48. Hello guys.

    I think that it won’t be long before the book will be out. Whoever has a corr database can already guess some of the contents of the book as a lot of my own games have recently be finished.

  49. @Franck steenbekkers
    Kotronias is being edited. The first half of the book is already typeset and proofed. We are talking a few weeks before it goes to print.

    Mikhalevski is delayed a bit because he plays so much chess, but will happen quite soon, we hope.

  50. Just curious:
    – Ftacnik covered anti-sicilians in GM 6 (2010); albeit with 2. … d6 in mind, of course.
    – “Experts on the Anti-Sicilian” (2011) covered quite a lot.
    – Sidenote: even Jacob likes Tony Ro’s book a lot, which also contains recommendations on the Anti-Sicilians 🙂

    So, my actual question: Is there really happening that much in Anti-Sicilians so that QC publishes a third book on the topic already?

    By the way, I own the “Experts on the Anti-Sicilians” book and I think it’s great! I’d love to see more of those cross-author books. For instance, the “minor openings” covered by Mikhalevski (but permanently delayed…) would be a perfect topic. Unfortunately, I recall that I read somewhere that the “Experts on the Anti-Sicilians” wasn’t commercially successful…

  51. Capodoglio :
    Well, I’m used to GM Rep, not sure a 2000 repertoire would cut it!
    Keep in mind I’m already in possess of Lysyj and Marin (though a bit too solid/outdated).

    None of these books is a GM repertoire. Bologan’s book keeps a 2000 player busy. There are more variations in it than in his other books, because the aggressive black lines need to be proven and the refutations (more or less) to all the white rubbish need precision too. He usually delivers two options against all important openings and he punishes the lesser ones hard.

  52. Jacob Aagaard :
    @Andre
    I expect him to bring his AAA game…

    Oh, I expect him too. Nikos will deliver good work. But this didn’t help his FR book in my eyes, because he almost exclusively chose lines I didn’t play when the FR was still part of my repertoire. 😉

  53. @Tobias
    It was not a disaster as well. You do have a point, but remember that we also publish books on what the authors want to write about! However, in this case we are talking about a total redoing of GM6 into two volumes, a Najdorf (6B) and 6A the Anti-Sicilians.

  54. Andre :

    Capodoglio :
    Well, I’m used to GM Rep, not sure a 2000 repertoire would cut it!
    Keep in mind I’m already in possess of Lysyj and Marin (though a bit too solid/outdated).

    None of these books is a GM repertoire. Bologan’s book keeps a 2000 player busy. There are more variations in it than in his other books, because the aggressive black lines need to be proven and the refutations (more or less) to all the white rubbish need precision too. He usually delivers two options against all important openings and he punishes the lesser ones hard.

    I have both Lysyj and Marin book and the analysis level is surely similar to a GM Rep level, though chosen variations are a bit dull here and there (Marin has some small holes in evaluations, but the book is so much more than just a repertoire, as usual).
    Thanks for the comments on Bologan’s work, in the end I bought it anyway, always good to have more options.
    Pretty surely I’ll buy both Solozhenkin and Nikos as well!

  55. This sort of humor is difficult for me….. I’ am eagerly awaiting any news on the first ”Playing 1.e4″- book…..

  56. wolfsblut :
    This sort of humor is difficult for me….. I’ am eagerly awaiting any news on the first ”Playing 1.e4″- book…..

    I’m starting to side with those who claim that Negi will finish before Shaw publishes the first of his books 😉

  57. LE BRUIT QUI COURT

    @Nikos Ntirlis
    Nikos, your book comes out when already Bologan (:) Bologan’s Black Weapons in the Open Games & 🙂 Bologan’s Ruy Lopez for Black) and Martin Lokander (:) The Open Games with Black) made their contribution to the hard-hitting 1… e5 tribe 🙂

    When can we exactly expect your book and why it isn’t in “Coming soon” section already? You can also give us more hints about lines you will cover because your competition already launched their aces!

  58. LE BRUIT QUI COURT :
    @Nikos Ntirlis
    Nikos, your book comes out when already Bologan (:) Bologan’s Black Weapons in the Open Games & Bologan’s Ruy Lopez for Black) and Martin Lokander (:) The Open Games with Black) made their contribution to the hard-hitting 1… e5 tribe
    When can we exactly expect your book and why it isn’t in “Coming soon” section already? You can also give us more hints about lines you will cover because your competition already launched their aces!

    LE BRUIT QUI COURT, is none of the books play the Marshall Gambit as the main line for black? i like to go for C89.

  59. @LE BRUIT QUI COURT
    I hardly think that Fide Master Martin Lokrander will be serious competition for Nikos’ book…

    As for Bologon, i.m.o. his books are overrated. I compared his book on the King’s Indian with Kotronias’ books on the King’s Indian, and Kotronias wins hands down. Kotronias is developing new theory while Bologan is in many lines just giving a number of games without adding a lot of his own analysis. I prefer quality over speed any time!

  60. Martin Lokander

    I did not realize that I was in competition with Quality Chess!
    Honestly, I’m glad Nikos writes a book on 1.e4 e5 since I’m sure he will produce excellent material. I have his book on the French and I really liked it (like most QC books).
    Hopefully our variations will not collide too much, but I don’t think there should be any problems with that. 1 e4 e5 is big enough for several books to be written on it.

  61. Ray :
    @LE BRUIT QUI COURT
    I hardly think that Fide Master Martin Lokrander will be serious competition for Nikos’ book…
    As for Bologon, i.m.o. his books are overrated. I compared his book on the King’s Indian with Kotronias’ books on the King’s Indian, and Kotronias wins hands down. Kotronias is developing new theory while Bologan is in many lines just giving a number of games without adding a lot of his own analysis. I prefer quality over speed any time!

    I think maybe you’re being kind of harsh comparing Bologan to Kotronias – the material in Bologan’s book is what, 7 years old or something now? And to publish a one book repertoire is always a very serious challenge compared to publishing 4 or so GM Repertoire books on the same subject. For what it is and was meant to be, I like Bologan’s book. To me it’s very similar in spirit to Gallagher’s “Play the King’s Indian”, which at the time was gold. But you look at it now, and maybe it’s simply not what you want to be using…

  62. @Martin Lokander
    Have looked at the pdf sample for this book and was highly impressed as there seems to be a lot of new ideas in lines that I actually play. Nikos will face a serious challenge in trying to improve on Martin’s book. Of course, I will probably buy both.

  63. @TonyRo: Maybe you’re right. However, I was not so much referring to the depth op the material (I do realise a one-volume publication has its limits) but more to the level of own analysis. I think Kotronias has much more of this than Bologan. If you scan through his book, you’ll notice at many places simply some game continuations quoted. Vigoritto also had severe space restrictions in his two volumes on the KID, but he gace more of his own views i.m.o. But maybe it’s largely a matter of taste 🙂 And last but not least, I also found Kotronias’ comments more insightfull than Bologan’s.

  64. Do John Shaw has already revealed the core of his e4 repertoire?
    If not, could you give us some hints (vs major lines e5, Sicilian, French and caro)?

  65. Last time it was mentionned the repertoire was the following :
    vs 1…e5 : Scotch
    vs 1…e6 : Tarrasch
    vs 1…c6 : Advance
    vs Sicilian : mostly open Sicilian with Bc4.

    Mostly an Adams/Rublevsky-like repertoire.
    K.

  66. I think John said against 1…e5 he was playing the Scotch, Tarrasch v the French, Advance Caro-Kann with 4.h4, Open Sicilians (no hints). I think that’s all the hints they have given.

  67. @Kieran
    @The Doctor
    @John Shaw

    Thanks for your answers.

    I’m looking forward to your books John.

    Any ideas when the excerpt of the first book will be available?

  68. @QualityChess
    How is the GM Rep 19 – Beating Minor Openings comming along ? Is it about to be done, can we still expect release over the winter or ?

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