A ‘Remastered’ Edition of a Standard Opening Text

One of the main replies to the Queen’s Gambit, the Slav has been played by 14 of the 16 World Champions, and is often used by the stars of modern chess, including Caruana, Aronian, Shirov, Ivanchuk and Morozevich. Its great popularity is due to its extreme solidity and abundant possibilities for dynamic counterplay.

This book provides detailed coverage to help players as both White and Black face the challenges of this tough yet rewarding opening. All lines after 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 are discussed, except those that transpose to the Semi-Slav.

The sharpest tactical lines of the Slav receive especially detailed coverage. These include the critical piece sacrifice in the main line (5...Bf5 6 Ne5 e6 7 f3 Bb4 8 e4 Bxe4), the Steiner line (5...Bg4) with 6 Ne5 Bh5 7 h3, and the possibly dubious but highly dangerous Geller Gambit (5 e4), which was a favourite of the young Kasparov. The trendy ...a6 lines are also covered systematically for the first time in chess literature.

This ‘remastered’ 2022 edition has been systematically rechecked and features hundreds of revisions to the analysis, in addition to brief summaries of the current theory in a number of especially topical variations. There are also vastly more diagrams than in the original edition.

Graham Burgess holds the world record for marathon blitz chess-playing. He is a highly versatile chess writer, whose previous books range from general guides for relatively inexperienced players to high-level theoretical manuals. His Mammoth Book of Chess (now in its fourth edition and available on Gambit’s Chess Studio app) won the 1997 British Chess Federation Book of the Year Award, while Nunn’s Chess Openings, of which he is a co-author, established itself as the leading modern one-volume openings encyclopaedia. He won the Val Thorens international tournament in 1988 and is a former champion of the Danish region of Funen. Nowadays he lives in Minnesota, USA.

“Provides detailed information to help players with both White and Black face the challenges of this difficult but rewarding opening” – Herman Grooten, www.schaaksite.nl

“an excellent exposition of the current state of theory in the Queen’s Gambit Slav defence” – Jonathan Tait, CORRESPONDENCE CHESS

“...covers every line of the Slav in a thorough and systematic way and has all the latest developments... excellent value for money” – Chris Rice, WEEKEND CHESS

“Burgess has done a very conscientious job. He gives you a very good survey of what has happened up to now and in openings where he has personal involvement, like 5.e4 Gambit, he offers a great deal of personal insight... a first rate opening book” – John Donaldson, INSIDE CHESS ONLINE

“This rather underestimated opening offers rich possibilities for surprising turns, like the bishop sacrifice 8...Bxe4. Burgess doesn’t just show the trendy lines, but also gives the old trustworthy variations. Gambit openings books are ideal for players who really wish to immerse themselves in an opening” – Bab Wilders, Nederlands Dagblad

“The Slav continues to remain a very popular opening at all levels and so a thorough survey from the ever diligent Burgess is very welcome. Burgess has meanwhile managed to maintain his reputation as a very conscientious author with this work, as once again he constantly corrects the analysis of others, whilst providing many important suggestions and improvements himself as well as producing clear assessments of lines” – Richard Palliser, HULL CHESS CLUB MAGAZINE

“...I would encourage you to buy and devour FM Graham Burgess’s extremely meaty new 256-page GAMBIT book, The Slav. It’s a most up-to-date detailed work which offers an abundance of ideas to suit virtually every style of player, whether he or she is looking for calm security in the opening, or tremendous tactical opportunities...” – Paul Motwani, SCOTTISH CHESS

“Fills an obvious gap in the market...” Alan Sutton, EN PASSANT

Download a pdf file with a sample from the book.

Gambit books by Graham Burgess: Chess Highlights of the 20th Century, Gambit Guide to the Torre Attack, The Slav, The Taimanov Sicilian, Chess Openings for Kids, The Gambit Book of Instructive Chess Puzzles, A Cunning Chess Opening Repertoire for White.