Check & Mate
In this clever and swoonworthy YA debut from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis, life’s moving pieces bring rival chess players together in a match for the heart.
Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory’s focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious “Kingkiller” Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess.
Nolan’s loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What’s even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory’s victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can’t help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist....
As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren’t only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent…and infuriating…)
Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory’s focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious “Kingkiller” Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess.
Nolan’s loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What’s even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory’s victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can’t help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist....
As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren’t only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent…and infuriating…)
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Readers say *Check & Mate* by Ali Hazelwood is a smart, charming enemies-to-lovers romance set in the competitive chess world, praised for witty bante...
I know nothing about chess, but I was still all in with Mallory and Nolan’s story. The enemy to lovers romance was cute, and seeing Mallory’s journey to accept herself for who she is, was amazing.
Mallory Greenleaf is a former child chess star who gave it all up years ago when her world was turned upside down. Mallory has a lot on her shoulders. Between being the main caregiver to her sisters and caring for her sick mom, she's also managing to make ends meet working at the mechanic shop that her uncle use to own.
Mallory lost her father a while ago and life has been tough for the Greenleaf family. They don't talk about their dad or the complicated relationship that Mallory had with chess. When Mallory's best friend tells her to sign up for a chess match and Mallory beats Nolan Sawyer. Nolan is the current world champion of chess and known as the "King killer." Mallory doesn't know what to think about it.
Soon Mallory finds herself forced back in the chess world to make ends meet for her family. Can she manage to keep her chess playing a secret from her family while keeping a safe distance from the game she used to love and the #1 ranked chess player she might be falling for?
I have read many Ali Hazelwood books, and I think that this one ranks up there near the top. I completely enjoyed this book. The coming of age, the building of each character and how Mallory comes to love herself for who she truly is. Looking for a Meet-Cute book? Here it is!
Mallory Greenleaf is a former child chess star who gave it all up years ago when her world was turned upside down. Mallory has a lot on her shoulders. Between being the main caregiver to her sisters and caring for her sick mom, she's also managing to make ends meet working at the mechanic shop that her uncle use to own.
Mallory lost her father a while ago and life has been tough for the Greenleaf family. They don't talk about their dad or the complicated relationship that Mallory had with chess. When Mallory's best friend tells her to sign up for a chess match and Mallory beats Nolan Sawyer. Nolan is the current world champion of chess and known as the "King killer." Mallory doesn't know what to think about it.
Soon Mallory finds herself forced back in the chess world to make ends meet for her family. Can she manage to keep her chess playing a secret from her family while keeping a safe distance from the game she used to love and the #1 ranked chess player she might be falling for?
I have read many Ali Hazelwood books, and I think that this one ranks up there near the top. I completely enjoyed this book. The coming of age, the building of each character and how Mallory comes to love herself for who she truly is. Looking for a Meet-Cute book? Here it is!
4.5 stars - With every book of theirs I read, I’m falling more and more in love with Ali Hazelwood’s brain. Mal and Nolan were a delight and I maybe kind of want to learn chess now??
What the actual hell was that? And this won the GR Choice Award?!
The MC Mallory Greenleaf is an awful, weak character, and I’m pretty sure she has multiple personalities. One minute she’s got this tough, IDK about anyone or anything, I hook up with anybody - boys, girls, strangers - it’s all the same. The next she’s this meek, shy, martyr who works at a gas station to support her worthless mom (not criticizing the arthritis part, just the part where she expects her 18-year old kid to support her and her other two kids), and two bratty, selfish, ungrateful sisters - who yell at her because she’s not paid the mortgage or bought them food or paid for her stupid sister to join the Roller Derby Association.
Maybe she’s bipolar. At one point, Mallory wants to kill them (not literally, but in a sisterly way):
“I absentmindedly lick discount Nutella off the spoon, fantasizing about pouring nail polish remover in the oatmeal. Just a dollop. Maybe two.”
Side rant: First of all, how exactly does one pour a “dollop” of nail polish remover? A “splash” maybe, but a “dollop”? Come on editors!
The next page, Mallory thinks, “God, I love them so much I could cry.”
The book is boringly tedious filled with a checklist of what the author and editors think the Gen Z kiddos like: bisexual characters who like casual sex, pop culture, a bajillion references to TikTok, and weird fan fiction.
The first half of chapter 1 is about Mallory drinking boba tea while her friend tries to talk her into playing in a chess tournament. Here’s a condensed version:
MALLORY: Mmm. I just love boba!
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: No.
EASTON: You love chess.
MALLORY: I don’t play chess anymore.
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: No.
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: Never.
EASTON: Please?
MALLORY: Okay.
Arghh! I hate weak female characters! This happens more than once. She says no, never, not gonna happen… um, okay.
The enemies to lovers trope is virtually nonexistent. Sawyer Nolan is a tall (and we’ll hear about how tall he at least eleventy-thousand more times), sexy man-beast of a chess player with a penchant for throwing temper tantrums at chess matches when he loses. Okay… that could be something. But, NO! He’s nothing but sweet and kind, while Mallory is just a crazy, erratic psycho who treats him like crap.
Ugh! Save your time and your money on this one.
The MC Mallory Greenleaf is an awful, weak character, and I’m pretty sure she has multiple personalities. One minute she’s got this tough, IDK about anyone or anything, I hook up with anybody - boys, girls, strangers - it’s all the same. The next she’s this meek, shy, martyr who works at a gas station to support her worthless mom (not criticizing the arthritis part, just the part where she expects her 18-year old kid to support her and her other two kids), and two bratty, selfish, ungrateful sisters - who yell at her because she’s not paid the mortgage or bought them food or paid for her stupid sister to join the Roller Derby Association.
Maybe she’s bipolar. At one point, Mallory wants to kill them (not literally, but in a sisterly way):
“I absentmindedly lick discount Nutella off the spoon, fantasizing about pouring nail polish remover in the oatmeal. Just a dollop. Maybe two.”
Side rant: First of all, how exactly does one pour a “dollop” of nail polish remover? A “splash” maybe, but a “dollop”? Come on editors!
The next page, Mallory thinks, “God, I love them so much I could cry.”
The book is boringly tedious filled with a checklist of what the author and editors think the Gen Z kiddos like: bisexual characters who like casual sex, pop culture, a bajillion references to TikTok, and weird fan fiction.
The first half of chapter 1 is about Mallory drinking boba tea while her friend tries to talk her into playing in a chess tournament. Here’s a condensed version:
MALLORY: Mmm. I just love boba!
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: No.
EASTON: You love chess.
MALLORY: I don’t play chess anymore.
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: No.
EASTON: Play in the tournament.
MALLORY: Never.
EASTON: Please?
MALLORY: Okay.
Arghh! I hate weak female characters! This happens more than once. She says no, never, not gonna happen… um, okay.
The enemies to lovers trope is virtually nonexistent. Sawyer Nolan is a tall (and we’ll hear about how tall he at least eleventy-thousand more times), sexy man-beast of a chess player with a penchant for throwing temper tantrums at chess matches when he loses. Okay… that could be something. But, NO! He’s nothing but sweet and kind, while Mallory is just a crazy, erratic psycho who treats him like crap.
Ugh! Save your time and your money on this one.
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