A Spanish grandmaster explains how creativity can be used to overcome technical obstacles on the chessboard. Once they have obtained an advantage, too many players make the mistake of assuming that the exploitation of this advantage will just be a matter of technique, requiring accuracy but little imagination. Romero shows that the opposite is often the case: sometimes it is the paradoxical solution that works, whereas the mechanical method would fritter away the hard-earned advantage. By following Romero in his investigation of the many outstanding practical examples in this book, readers will inevitably increase their understanding of chess strategy in general, and fine-tune their instinct for sensing those critical moments when non-standard solutions are necessary.

Alfonso Romero is a grandmaster from Spain, and was editor of the magazine Gambito. He was runner-up in the 1984/5 European Junior Championship and has represented his country in several Olympiads. He has a reputation for playing imaginative attacking chess. This is his first chess book.

See also: The Ultimate Chess Strategy Book, volume 1, co-author Amador Gonzalez de la Nava.

Download a pdf file with a sample from the book.

"The game selection is superb. I was excited by numerous brilliantly played top-level games that I'd never seen. ... To me, this is the most entertaining and absorbing of recent books that deal with strategy and I can recommend it without reservation." - IM John Watson, TWIC

"An excellent book on chess strategy. Highly recommended." - Paul Dunn, Australian Chess

"I've read several instructional books, including Dvoretsky's famous works, but this book is by far the best. Often instructional books use the same hoary old examples, and although this book has a couple of well-known examples, almost all were completely new to me. The only problem is that it is quite advanced in some places - as a rough guide, anyone rated about 1500-1700 upwards will benefit enormously from this book, and even below that it is a useful and entertaining read." - Scott Fraser, Scottish Chess magazine

"We are given a real glimpse of Grandmaster schematic thinking at its best" - John Pugh, Chess Post

"This book would prove to be an excellent addition to anyone's chess library - and here's hoping that Alfonso will be writing more books in the near future." - Michael Stevenson, New Zealand Chess

"Books on the middle game seem to be more prolific than those on the opening at the moment. But this latest offering, far from being just another book on the middlegame, takes a more innovative approach. For it starts at the point where many manuals on the middlegame end. Whereas most other books explain the different ways in which one side or the other can gain an advantage of one kind or another, this book is all about exploiting that advantage to the full. ... This is the best book on the subject that I have read in a long time, and I guarantee you will not fail to be as fascinated by it as I was." - Alan Sutton, En Passant

"The material seems to me to be very original and, unlike many chess books these days, the fruit of personal searching and effort." - Phil Adams, 3Cs website

"Romero analyses very deeply! If you like to deal with just a few games or with game fragments on a strategical theme, but you still want to learn a lot then this book will be very useful for you." - Dr. E. Rausch, Rochade

"The examination of the games goes far beyond the chapter themes. Romero's analysis is very stimulating. The material appears to be most suitable for strong players." - KARL