As someone who isn't usually a romance reader, this book got me all the way on the Ali Hazelwood train. I get it now, team. I'm hooked. I'll be reading them all from here on out, and also I want to learn so much more about chess.

Check & Mate is easily my favorite Ali Hazelwood book. The characters are great, the romance is perfect and there's no cringey smut. This is a YA title about a girl who swore of chess but gets back on the competitive scene in order to make money for her struggling family. She crosses paths with the chess world champ, who is meant to be her rival but quickly becomes something more. There is more talk about sex than in your typical YA work, but there's no explicit scenes and nothing real teens haven't heard before. Our MC is bi, which is cool. She is flawed and relatable and towards the end of the book when she gets a stern talking to, I did cheer, because even though I liked her, she needed to hear some things. The romance itself is pretty slow burn, and you can tell the love interest cares for her so deeply. He helps our MC realize how many people she has in corner and realize her true potential, and she helps learn to take care of himself. They are truly a great pair.

Ultimately, any teen who loves romance would love this. A seventeen year old non-reader who loves The Summer I Turned Pretty show or really anything like it would probably devour this. It's kind of perfect.

This book was a great YA read! Ali Hazelwood has written a beautiful world and also had me super interested in chess for the first time ever... I loved these characters and also getting to know them was so fun. Definitely a recommend..

I'm on the fence with this book. I read it quickly - mainly because Ali Hazelwood's writing is so easy to read - but I feel like I was not invested in the romance at all, which is such a big part of this book, and much of the plot felt a little too easy.

Mallory has left the world of chess when she was fourteen. We meet her when she's a jaded 18, trying to support her family - her mother, who has rheumatoid arthritis, and her two younger sisters, Sabrina and Darcy - with her meagre beginner mechanic salary. When she's offered a chess fellowship after a surprising win at a charity chess tournament, she is hesitant to go back to the sport she left behind, but what other option does she have when the money is good?

I related a lot to Mallory's elder sister mentality - taking on too much of the reality of the family and the burdens of knowing that your family is struggling, while hoping your siblings can be spared the thoughts. I loved her side of things. Despite her flaws, I loved her as a character and related to her a lot. She had a lot to contend with and I appreciate that we get to see so much of her family life and dynamics throughout the story.

Enter the LI, Nolan Sawyer. 20, world champion, and ranked number 1 in chess, he's a god within the chess community. However, I found him as interesting as a cardboard cutout. He's thoughtful and I did feel like he was able to parse Mallory's BS pretty well to get her to see reality, but outside of Mallory's orbit, he was just... there. We never really get to know him that well and anything he does or say is related to chess or Mallory. There's nothing that's just HIM and maybe it's because he's given so much to the sport, but I felt like his best friends, who are tertiary characters, secondary at times, had more personality to them than he did.

Then there was the chess side of things. Yes, Mallory puts in the work to learn and study, plus she has the advantage of being a prodigy of sorts, but it all felt so easy. I saw the twist coming from a mile away, and while I loved how it worked out, it did feel like an idealized, rosy, fairytale end that was wholly unrealistic. The message was heartwarming, but I wish it had been a bit more realistic.

All in all, it's a good and easy read, but I wanted a bit more from it. I'm curious to see what else Hazelwood has up her sleeve, but I do wish she'd leave the broody, unknowable LI behind and start working to develop them more.

Rep: MC's mother has rheumatoid arthritis

TW: sexism, misogyny, financial trouble, chronic illness; mentions sexual content, infidelity, death of a parent, death of a grandparent, institutionalization, dementia, ableism, car accident, alcoholism

Plot: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
World Building: 4/5
Writing: 4/5
Pacing: 3/5
Overall: 3/5

eARC gifted via NetGalley by G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers via PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group in exchange for an honest review.

This was cute, but there was a lot of chess. And listen, I know this book was about chess😂 but omg.

I also found Mallory and her relationship with her sisters so annoying. And I wanted more of the actual romance.

I try to give YA romance a shot every once in a while and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. This one was in the middle.

I tried so very hard to get into this book unfortunately it was just not for me. I wish the author much success with this book.

Thank you so much NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book I have read by Ali, and I must say I was not disappointed. I heard so much about this book, so when I finally got to read it, I can see why. It is a YA book, and the characters being on the teen side - Mallory was acting her age in more ways then one, to the point it did drive me bonkers from time to time. But we all were sort of annoying teens at that age so Ali to me wrote that right. And I mean, how many secrets do we keep from family for them to already know? That is how it felt with the whole chess thing. I did appreciate Nolan for being real. Not the quick romance and flirt, but being truthful and blunt - well when he was there. It was cute for YA. It was far from my normal romantasy but I do want to read the other books from Ali.

Absolutely loved this book! I’m not a chess fan, but this book was still captivating and not confusing at all. I loved Mallory and Nolan’s relationship as well. I wish we could’ve gotten more at the end.

This romance novel is a delightful escape filled with laughter and love. The characters are relatable, and their chemistry is undeniable. As they face challenges together, their bond deepens, making the journey to love feel genuine and heartfelt. With charming dialogue and a feel-good ending, it’s perfect for anyone looking for a sweet love story!

This is a very low three star for me. I'm actually shocked I didn't love this book because I absolutely love Ali Hazelwood. Before I get into my disappointments, I want to mention a few of the things I actually enjoyed. My favorite thing about this book was actually the chess. This is surprising to me because I know absolutely nothing about chess. However, during this book I started talking to my dad more about the sport (he plays), and I even looked up where the next World Championship will be. One other thing I loved about this book was Nolan. He was truly my favorite character, and everyone else was the complete opposite for me.

One of my main gripes about this book was the characters. I really did not care for Mallory, and I also did not like her family. I wanted to skip every scene with her family in it. I don't like Mallory and Nolan together because I just don't think she's good enough for him. A lot of her arguments were really uncalled for, and I just couldn't forgive her for some of the things she said. I also don't like when a YA book has sex in it. This book mentioned sex on about every other page, you could say Mallory was a bit too obsessed with it. I just don't think sex should be in YA. I also really didn't like some of the comments that were made about virginity.

Overall, I definitely prefer Ali Hazelwood adult books. I will be more trepidatious about her YA books in the future.

A cute novel that was a fun read. It was entertaining and enjoyable. I look forward to reading more books by this author.

I have read all of Ali Hazelwood books and she has a very distinctive style in all of them. It was fun reading the YA version of her style. If you like Ali Hazelwood books, you will like this book. If you do not like her style, then you probably won’t like this book.

This book also reminds me of a PG version of the show The Queen’s Gambit.

The story centers around Mallory and Nolan. Both characters are complex and have side-plots outside of their romance. They start off as rivals and the romance kicks off pretty quickly. Most of Ali Hazelwood books are insta-lovey on the guy’s part and this is not that different.

The chess was nicely explained and seemed to be well-researched. However, I did not need all the Gen-Z references.

This was a very sweet YA book that I will probably read again.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for the honest review.

I’d like to preface my review by saying that this is one of about 3 romcoms/romances (that isn’t fantasy) I’ve ever read and i definitely rate them on how much fun I had and less based off of amazing writing if that makes sense lol.

I. LOVED. THIS!!! I had so much fun honestly lol l I laughed and I cried?!? The tender sister moments and the MC coming to grips with hard truths about herself were just so touching honestly. I loved the romance and banter and the chess element (I learned a lot lol).

NOLAN SAWYER!! Completely perfection. He’s funny yet dry, sounds hot af, is extremely smart and completely confident! I loved him and loved him for Mal.

These characters felt so real for a YA romance. They were completely flushed out. I even loved ALL of the supporting characters.

Overall, a fun YA romance. Quick and easy to read. Will make you chuckle for sure and probably tear up. Honestly the only downside was the ending just kind of ended?? lol I’d like to have seen more from their relationship but I’m happy nonetheless.

Thank you to the publisher, PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers for this eARC for review. All thoughts are my own.

5/5 stars

I enjoyed this so much more than I thought I would! I don't normally read YA Romance, but since this is Ali Hazelwood (a favorite), I wanted to see what her writing style would be like in a different age group. This was so so much fun! Every single side character brought something invaluable to the story with every interaction, but I most of all enjoyed the two main characters. It was refreshing just how perma-calm Nolan was even when ish was hitting the fan, and I loved how Mallory's character had to battle the guilt of feeling like she had to uphold her family after the loss of her (crappy) father, but found her way back to chess and took it back for herself.

Mallory Greenleaf has put chess behind her since it tore her family apart. Her focus is on her mom, sisters, and her mundane job. Reluctantly, she enters a charity tournament and beats the infamous "Kingkiller" Nolan Sawyer, the reigning chess world champion. Nolan's unexpected loss intrigues everyone, and he seeks a rematch. Mallory's victory brings financial opportunities, but she's torn between the game and her family's well-being. As she climbs the ranks, her love for chess resurfaces, and she navigates the fierce competition, realizing that the game goes beyond the board, shining a brighter spotlight than she ever imagined.

I absolutely loved Check & Mate! I listened to the audiobook and it was so fun and the narrator was lovely to listen to. As Ali Hazelwood’s first young adult novel, I was worried I would not enjoy it as much as her adult novels, but I was genuinely blown away.

Thank you to @prhaudio and @penguinteen for the advanced copy! All opinions are my own.

Ali Hazelwood is such an easy writer to love. While this book is definitely more YA than others, I still found it to be delightful! Well developed characters, a fun plot, tension, banter, slow burn romance... what else is there to say. I loved this book and thought it was a lot of fun!

Depuis le temps que je vois la popularité de l'autrice prendre de l'ampleur sur le Bookstagram anglophone, j'ai décidé de la découvrir avec un de ses récents romans (alors que je possède le premier dans ma PAL depuis sa sortie ahah) !
¤
J'ai tellement accroché à cette romance ! Moi qui ai besoin de pauses pour mes yeux à cause des ebooks que je lis sur mon téléphone, là, je ne pouvais pas m'arrêter.
Cette histoire s'est lu assez facilement, même en anglais. L'écriture est fluide et les phrases, simples.
Très rapidement, l'autrice nous fait entrer dans le vif du sujet avec Mallory et le monde de la compétition d'échec.
Malgré son talent, Mallory a juré de ne plus jamais y jouer, surtout après les ravages qu'il y a eu sur sa dfamille. Cependant, à la recherche de travail car elle est un des seuls revenus du foyer ( avec sa mère aussi, mais dont la santé se détériore), elle accepte de participer à un dernier tournoi avec une amie, où elle affronte et gagne contre Nolan... Nolan, le champion du monde en titre.
Moi qui ne joue pas aux échecs, j'ai beaucoup apprécié l'accent mis dessus dans le récit et les descriptions des tournois. C'était intéressant et j'ai trouvé que ça ajoutait une certaine dynamique à l'histoire.
La relation entre Mallory et Nolan était si hdlskshkehejekbdksj !! Ce mélange illisible de lettres montre à quel point j'ai aimé les suivre dans leur histoire. J'ai ADORÉ leur romance. Mon cœur battait pour Mallory et Nolan ! J'étais si impliquée dans chacune de leurs interactions, chaque petit pas dans leur attachement et affection qui grandissaient l'un pour l'autre.
Outre leur romance, j'ai aussi bien apprécié les thématiques familiales qui étaient abordées, à travers les autres personnages. Je me suis vraiment attachée à tout le monde !
C'était mignon. C'était tout doux.

This was my first Ali Hazelwood book, and I definitely want to check out more of her writing after this! I really enjoyed the dynamic between Mallory and Nolan. I thought they were very sweet together, and I love how patient Nolan was with her feelings. I thought their banter was a lot of fun, and I loved watching them learn to trust one another. I also really liked learning more about Mallory and why she had such a distaste for chess. Nolan was definitely my favourite of the two, I thought he was a sweet little cinnamon roll and I want him to have all the happiness in the world. I wouldn't be mad if we got another story featuring these two. The dynamic between her family was also a big part of this book, and my heart broke for their situation. I liked how Mallory began to open up more to her family about the guilt she was carrying and how it was affecting her. I thought the look into the gender stereotypes in the chess community was also really well done, and could be applied to a lot of other male dominated areas in the world as well.

A resounding 4.25/5

I was nervous going into this book because I had seen mixed reviews. It seemed like people either really loved the book or thought it was slow and dragged on. I have really enjoyed all of Hazelwood's books, so I knew I had to give it a shot, and I am so glad that I did.

Enemies to lovers is a trope that I will always read and love. Mallory and Noah's chemistry throughout the book was off the chart, and it was a slow burn. I also really enjoyed their connection because of their relationships with their fathers. It was a common thread, along with chess, that made them perfect for each other.

This was a fun book, and I really appreciated the opportunity to read it! I will recommend this book.