Bluffer's Guide to Chess: Instant Wit and Wisdom

by Boris Starling

The Bluffer’s Guide to Chess will tell you everything you need to know about a game where the maxim "strategy is simple, but not easy" actually makes sense. Learn when to deploy counter-gambits, finachettos and hanging pieces, and never need a lesson again.

128 pages, Paperback

Published August 25, 2020

About the author

Boris Starling's writing career began at the age of eight, when his English teacher spotted that his short story was (a) unusually good for a child his age (b) copied verbatim from Tintin's 'Prisoners Of The Sun.' (That was also the first time he learnt the word 'verbatim', not to mention the term 'copyright violation'.)

All his work since then has been strictly his own. He has written eight novels, including Sunday Times and New York Times bestsellers. Five appear under his own name (Messiah, Storm, Vodka, Visibility and, in a daring breakout from one-word titles, The Stay-Behind Cave) and three as Daniel Blake (Soul Murder (UK)/Thou Shalt Kill (US), City Of Sins (UK)/City Of The Dead (US) and White Death). Every one of these books features someone dying horribly somewhere along the way. Sometimes they even deserve it.

Boris also created the 'Messiah' franchise which ran for seven years on BBC1, and has written screenplays for productions in the UK and US.

He has inherited his grandfather's male pattern baldness, but sadly not his prodigious height. He is a keen sportsman, though he has now reached the age where enthusiasm and experience are beginning to trump sheer skill. He lives in Dorset, England, with his wife, children, greyhounds, and however many chickens manage to keep clear of marauding foxes.

Reviews

[JHB · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun little book. I skimmed over any parts that teach basic info that I already knew, but the humorous interjections and historical bits were very enjoyable