Check & Mate

The page colour was different and damaged. Very disappointed

If you want a romance that doesn't read like every other romance book... this is the one! Great story, unique premise, no notes.

I have seriously loved every single Ali Hazelwood book I’ve read! This was no exception. I loved the story, the characters, and their struggles throughout. The budding romance was so cute and fun! I was definitely laughing out loud many times during this book!Example: “I glare down at my ill-timed, uncooperative, treacherous body, and vow to never feed it leafy vegetables again in revenge. Take that, you little bitch.”This (about getting her period inconveniently) had me LAUGHING so hard because we have all been there! I just had so much fun reading about this character who was so funny and SO relatable! I also really enjoyed the passion for chess, having a passion for something competitive feels so good! Definitely recommend this funny, cute, and completely relatable story!!!

Ce roman d'Ali Hazelwood est un petit bonbon ! hazelwood - Check & Mate de Ali Hazelwood 3343367894J'en ai lu plusieurs d'elle récemment, et je m'étais un peu lassée de son habituelle "recette", et là je dois dire que même si on retrouve les fondamentaux de cette autrice, c'est une lecture super fraîche, douce et très intéressante à suivre.Si comme moi vous ne connaissez rien aux échecs, pas de panique ! Même si on ne comprend rien aux schémas de jeux, aux stratégies et compagnie, ça n'empêche pas d'être immergée dans cet univers aux côtés des personnages et de suivre leurs aventures. C'est chouette de voir Mallory renouer avec ce jeu, la voir faire connaissance avec des personnes qui feront peu à peu partie de son cercle (et là, on peut imaginer des (micro) nouvelles avec les persos secondaires, on est d'accord ?), et bien sûr suivre son rapprochement avec Nolan ...Comme souvent, Ali Hazelwood combat les stéréotypes de genre dans ce roman, et je ne peux que me féliciter de voir une nana comme Mallory battre à plates coutures et rabattre le caquet à 2-3 gars bien machos !Le personnage principal masculin est délicieux et comme souvent chez cette autrice, c'est un mec discret, taiseux mais plein de charisme. J'ai trouvé que Mallory était un personnage très réaliste, et même si pour elle, cela fait mal à entendre et à admettre, Nolan l'a très bien cernée.La romance coche la case "slow burn", ça reste doux et discret, j'ai beaucoup aimé la façon dont les choses évoluaient entre eux, et puis bon, j'ai un gros faible pour ce type de héros qui aime en secret et en silence et couve l'autre du regard avant de se lancer.Les persos secondaires sont tops, ils ont tous un rôle à jouer et donnent du corps à l'histoire, y compris certains dans l'arrière-plan comme la jeunette de la BBC.Une très bonne lecture, je n'avais vraiment pas envie de les quitter, le YA/NA allant décidément très bien à Ali Hazelwood !

Charming story with relatable, down to earth characters. Loved that the story was set in the world of chess. Had a lot of fun learning about the competitions and the different chess moves (yes there was a lot of googling during this reading, but only for my own interest). The romance was fun and adorable. Nolan Sawyer deserves the world. I just loved his confidence, patience, and support for Mallory. He was just so honest and reasonable. I also loved Mallory as well. Her struggle with finding happiness while shouldering the weight of her family was so relatable. I just wished her relationship with Nolan developed more earlier on than towards the end.Overall, I had a lot of fun reading this story. Although I could have done with a little less pop culture references, I still think it was a great coming of age story.

At just 18 years old, Mallory Greenleaf is carrying the weight of the world on her back. She’s not following her best friend to college, but instead is working a thankless job at a garage, struggling to make mortgage payments and buy her little sisters what they need while trying to help her chronically ill mom. It’s…a lot. In the midst of this, she’s a child chess prodigy who hasn’t played in four years.Her best friend guilts her into a small time charity match in which she finds herself across the board against the top player in the world, young Nolan Sawyer.The most surprising bit? Not only does she match him, she bests him — much to her surprise and that of the chess world. Nolan? Not so much surprised as excited. He is driven, drawn to play her again.Mallory is quickly offered an internship at a local chess club; she’ll sign on for a year and get paid to play and learn and study chess while hopefully moving up in the ranks. And while she doesn’t exactly want to do it, the money that comes with it is staggering and will go a long way to help her family.Mallory is surprised to find her love of the game rekindled, but as she works to keep her renewed interest in chess a secret from her family, what will it cost her? And what game is Nolan really playing?Listen, I absolutely LOVE Ali Hazelwood books and this was no exception. I even snuck this one into school to read during my planning period. This one is branded as YA (the sex isn’t steamy) but it’s enjoyable for anyone. The characters are believable in both their flaws and strengths, the chess is interesting as a backdrop, and there is no drawn out third act breakup. You’ll love these kids and root for them to figure it all out.