my latest books
"Re-Engineering the Chess Classics"
Nominated for the 2023 Chess.com Book of the Year
"The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement"
"Game Changer" won the ECF Book of the Year 2019 and the FIDE Book of the Year 2019
Silicon Road: Engine Snacks! Know this double rook endgame!
ck article is in our Engine Snacks series! Leela counters a positional squeeze from Stockfish by transposing into a double-rook endgame a pawn down. To my shock and surprise, this endgame – with Stockfish having a far-advanced a-pawn – was a simple draw!
Knowing this position and its unexpected result might save you a half point or two in your career!
Engine snacks! Exquisite geometry!
Some moves make an impression on you forever, and this is certainly one of them. Stockfish was a piece for a pawn up and completely winning against Leela Zero’s baby sister: Leela CPU. Many moves would finish off the job, but none so powerfully as Stockfish’s…
When a piece less doesn’t matter!
Stockfish sacrifices a piece for compensation that is not clear to a casual glance: the black king is exposed but there are no immediate threats. A series of powerful moves with the major pieces coordinates the white pieces into an unstoppable attacking force!
After reading this article, you will have gained the tools to better assess such long-term piece sacrifices and hopefully be inspired to use them in your own games!
Engine Snacks! Conquering space with g4!
This super-quick article is in our Engine Snacks series! We see two power plays from Stoofvlees and Stockfish, expanding a queenside space advantage across the whole board with a powerful g4 kingside thrust! These are great examples of whole board play: a major theme I examine in “The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement” and it’s definitely something we should try and emulate in our own games!
"The secret of my success: with every move I force the opponent to think for themselves!"
- Alexander Alekhine

about
I am a Chess Grandmaster and writer, and one of England's top players. When I am not doing my job as an IT Consultant, I fill my free time with as much chess as possible

my work
Writing and discussing chess has always been one of my passions. I review chess books in a regular column for New in Chess magazine and have written 8 books myself. I also contribute to chess videos regularly.

contact me
I hope that you enjoy the site. I will enrich its content over time and would love to hear what you think. Let me know whether there are any topics you would like me to cover in my blog.
"How many moves do I consider when analysing? Only one, but it's always the best one!"
- Emanuel Lasker