Chess is 99% tactics. So to be a good chess player, you have to spend a lot of your training time on tactics. Although basic tactics are explained in a number good books, complicated tactics – the kind that separate tournament winners from the pack – require intuition, imagination and precision. The Magic of Chess Tactics helps you develop these qualities. 
Aimed primarily at aspiring chess players from club to master level who seriously want to improve their chess understanding, The Magic of Chess Tactics provides examples selected for both their entertainment and instructional value – as well as detailed explanations and exercises. 
Claus Dieter Meyer, chess author and FIDE Master, is a well known analyst and professional chess trainer. Karsten Müller is an International Grandmaster and co-author, along with Frank Lamprecht, of the highly acclaimed Secrets of Pawn Endings and Fundamental Chess Endings. His popular monthly column Endgame Corner appears right here at ChessCafe.com. 
"I have come to realise that there are basically two types of chess tactics. First, simple kinds of combinations you need to know when you start to play chess. I still believe they are the basis of everything. Things that computers see in a half-second. But the book is not about them. For those simple tactics, old Koblentz books are more than enough. This book is about *complicated* chess tactics, the kind you sometimes need hours of analysis just to discover the truth of the position. It's hard to see and calculate perfectly on the board; one needs intuition, imagination and precision. 
"It's not easy to develop these qualities but I believe that the present book, full of examples and high quality analyses, will help you achieve that objective. 
"Welcome to the magical world of tactics!" –From the Foreword by Alexei Shirov

MAGIC OF CHESS TACTICS

Karsten Müller

Claus Dieter Mayer

Arts & Photography

Russell Enterprises

"1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3, is one of the most aggressive chess openings ever devised. Dynamite was invented by a Swede, Alfred Nobel. The book you are reading now, however, was not written by Nordic players. Instead, Grandmaster Karsten Müller and FIDE Master Martin Voigt bring a touch of German method to the analysis of the explosive group of classical open games where White goes for out-and-out attack based on an early e4, d4 and Bc4, often with c2-c3 to follow. 
Müller and Voigt do not confine themselves to the Danish Gambit alone but they examine a whole family of related opening variations that share some common characteristics. Most importantly, White is ready to offer some material (a pawn or two, sometimes a piece or more). White goes for the jugular and if Black is not careful he will not even reach the middle game, let alone an endgame. ...A guiding principle for the authors of this book is that White will play attacking chess, fighting for the initiative at every move. If Black does not meet the challenge in an equally determined way, he will surely lose." – From the Foreword by Tim Harding

Danish Dynamite, Explosive Gambits: The Danish, Goring, Scotch and Urusov

Martin Voigt

Russell Enterprises, Inc.

Combines clear discussions of tactical themes with over 600 well-chosen positions to test, challenge and teach. Although the classic combinations are not ignored, the emphasis here is on positions from modern tournament practice of the last decade. Tactics is a very important part of the game of chess and conscientious study and application of tactical principles is crucial to success. This book offers every type of tactical motif imaginable, from the more common back rank mates, pins, skewers, forks, up to and including some beautiful and rare combinations. This tactical book will prove exceptionally useful for a wide range of players, intermediate through master strength and beyond.

The ChessCafe Puzzle Book: Test and Improve Your Tactical Vision

Grundlagen Der Schachendspiele

Humor & Entertainment

Frank Lamprecht

Puzzles & Games

Gambit Publications Ltd

The Scandinavian Defense is increasingly popular with club and internet players. It is easy to learn because there is relatively little theory and once White has played 1.e4 he cannot avoid Black uncorking the Scandinavian. This book is the long-awaited translation of a German bestseller considered by many to be the best book ever on the Scandinavian. It does not concentrate on theoretical lines but on the structural ideas that govern this opening. Basic strategic themes, how pawn structures dictate plans of attacks, which tactical motifs you can expect in certain typical positions, that is what this book is about. You will learn how to outplay your opponent with solid and relatively easy-to-learn moves.

The Modern Scandinavian: Themes, Structures & Plans in an Increasingly Popular Chess Opening

Matthias Wahls

Hannes Langrock

New In Chess

One of the best and most popular ways to meet White's first move 1.e4 remains the tried and tested 1…e5. After this move the majority of games steer for the Ruy Lopez. A perfectly fine choice for White, but one that requires you to study the countless different setups and follow the continuously evolving theory in that opening. Karsten Müller and Georgios Souleidis present an alternative that is ideal for the average club player: a complete repertoire for White in the Italian Opening. This modern version of the age-old ‘Giuoco Piano', with the innocent looking pawn moves c3 and d3, is not only popular at club level, but is also regularly adopted by many strong Grandmasters including the very best, such as Magnus Carlsen and Anish Giri.
The set-up is easy to learn and understand, and theoretical novelties are much less important than the sound principles it is based on, such as the pawn push d3-d4 or bringing the b1 knight over to the kingside and into the attack. The Slow Italian may look innocent, but is actually full of venom, because White has a lot of options to create aggressive play by making natural looking moves with his pieces. Müller and Souleidis have created a solid weapon that every amateur chess player will delight in playing. With a foreword by Anish Giri.

Winning with the Slow (but Venomous!) Italian: An Easy-to-Grasp Chess Opening for White

Souleidis, Georgios

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Books by Karsten Müller