Check & Mate is Ali Hazelwood’s first YA book and it was so good. If you were worried about the switch from adult to YA there is no need because this is definitely a mature YA that deals with hard issues and relationships.
Mallory refuses to play chess, discuss chess, or be in the room with a chessboard. Chess is off limits but she gets conned into a celebrity tournament to help out her best friend. The problem is that she happens to beat the world #1 chess champion. And he also happens to be really good looking but as soon as she beats him she runs away.

Life is hard for Mallory with her moms health issues, her dad out of the picture and her two little sisters that rely on her. So when she gets to opportunity to be trained and paid to play chess she is completely against it but decides to hid it from her family to help support them.

Lots of cute meet ups and fun side characters are thrown at you within this fun world of chess and the budding relationship between Mallory and Nolan Sawyer. The smart witty dialogue and emotional backstory for these characters keeps you wanting to read past your bedtime. Highly recommend

This was my first Ali Hazelwood book, I have 3 of her other books on my shelf and will absolutely be prioritizing those after reading Check and Mate! I was a little worried if I would enjoy this one at first being that it is a YA book and I tend to not read too many YA books these days as I don’t seem to connect to most of them anymore. However, it exceeded my expectations and I ended up loving it!

I really enjoy Ali Hazelwood’s writing style and can’t wait to read her other books. It started out a little bit on the slower side but picked up quickly and was hard to put down! I was also thinking I would need to know about chess to enjoy this book but that ended up not being the case at all and it was a quick, easy read. I loved the main characters who were very likable and I loved their development throughout the book. This was such a cute story with a happy ever after ending which of course is my favorite!

Thank you so much Netgalley and Penguin Teen/Putnam for my early digital copy for my honest thoughts and review!

Miss Ali Hazelwood never misses, will never miss. I was nervous about it being young adult but it worked so well! Chess vibes / aesthetic was chefs kiss. I already know everyone’s gonna be ravinggg about this is novemeber!

Check & Mate is the kind of book that is going to draw inevitable comparisons to The Queen’s Gambit. And that’s mostly because the main character is female and the Netflix show is the only cultural phenomenon surrounding chess in the last decade. Given that I actually haven’t seen the show - I feel like I can give a fairly unbiased take on the crux of the matter here… does this work as a YA romance?

I’ll say the romance itself is cute - a cheeky take on the instalove trope that works because the male lead falls for Mallory purely because of her chess skills. Their interactions carried the story right up until the disastrous third act conflict that is the most easily avoidable conflict in the history of unnecessary, short-lived breakups. I like stubborn characters but Mallory was stubborn to a fault and seemed so entirely wrapped in her worldview it made her impossible to sympathize with.

Speaking of Mallory - I get the sense of wish-fulfillment her character represents. She’s barely scraping by, acting as a parental figure when she’s only eighteen years old, and doesn’t see any prospects in her life. Then this is all resolved as she is pulled back into the world of chess with her miraculous skills as a chess prodigy. As much as I understand the title “prodigy” requiring some suspension of disbelief, I just couldn’t overlook how easy everything in Mallory’s competitions seemed. The upset she pulls at the end of the book without having played chess for almost a decade is genuinely so funny - and not for the right reasons.

Overall, I will give this book a pass for being readable and cute in the way all of Ali Hazelwood’s romances seem to be. But I think I prefer she stick to the “women in STEM” kind of approach she took when writing atypical female leads instead of the chess prodigy version.

Thank you to the publisher G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers for providing an e-ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

Such a cute cute book. I love this author and try to read all her books. They never disappoint. I loved the characters and the chess aspect to this story. Really draws you in. I will definitely be recommending this to everyone. Loved it. 4.5 stars. Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy of this book.

It was a short and cute read, I finished it in one sitting.
But I have unsettled feelings when reading it. I believe that this book is intended for younger readers, but there is a lot of sexual references in this book, even the fmc's sister who is a 12 yo is suddenly asking a stranger about his sexual preferences, on a dinning table, and her mother doesn't even care to interrupt. I also can't feel the connection between fml and mmc. Nolan, the mmc, is actually an interesting character, but sadly his character has no depth. We get Mal's background story but nothing for Nolan. The ending is a little bit rushed and the conflict is actually pretty weak.

I'd recommend this to those who are looking for a short read, but I honestly would not recommend it to younger readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP, G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review

Hazelwood's YA/New Adult debut is heartwarming and hilarious. Featuring a duo who are both competitive and headstrong. An FMC who guards her heart and an MMC who calls her on her BS and forces those walls down. Officially hitting shelves: November 7th 2023

♟️Chess is Hot
💙 Forced Proximity
♟️ He Falls First & Harder
💙 Reformed Bad Boy
♟️Bisexual FMC
💙 Witty Banter

4.5 🌟's

✨ tropes: sports rom (chess), rivals to lovers, pining, he falls first, virgin hero, bisexual rep
🌶 spice: 2/5
❌ CW: chronic illness, death of loved ones, parental neglect

this is everything you'd want and expect from ali hazelwood; achingly sweet, vulnerable and intelligent - another hit for me ♟

chef's kiss

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to the publisher Penguin for the e-ARC via Netgalley. Releases November 7, 2023!

📚 Check & Mate
✍ Ali Hazelwood
📖 YA Romance
⭐4.75/5
🌶️ 🌶️ (1.5? It's closed door but barely)

➡Four years ago, Mallory vowed to never pick up another chess piece after her involvement in the sport tore her family apart. Now, she spends her days working as a mechanic, supporting her mom and younger sisters. As her best friend gets ready to head off to college, she ropes Mallory into playing a charity chess tournament and she inadvertently sweeps the floor with Nolan Sawyer, the sports reigning World Champion.

Undefeated for years prior to the tournament, the world expects Nolan to come back angry and swinging (per his reputation) but all he really wants is to keep playing chess with Mallory. Mallory, for her part, wants nothing to do with the sport...until her win opens the door that could be the only way to keep her family from losing their home.

As she collects more wins and begins to remember why she fell in love with chess in the first place, the game gets harder, both on and off the board. With her head and her heart competing for the ultimate prize, will she find everything she's ever wanted or succumb to being a pawn in her own game?
◾
💭 This book was Hazelwood at her best. Full of driven characters, a storyline you can't put down and just enough chemistry to light a wildfire, Check & Mate is proof that Hazelwood just keeps getting better.
◾
🙏 Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for the advanced copy of Check & Mate. All opinions are my own.

🎯 What I loved: Mallory Greanleaf is a powerful force to be reckoned with and made for a phenomenally complex main character to read about. Her storyline was well developed before she even interacted with Nolan, so although their romance became a primary feature of the book, it wasn't the only factor driving the story forward. Think The Queen's Gambit but with more family obligation, sexism call-outs and loveable characters.

🙅‍♀️ What I didn't: I really wanted more at the end. Although I think I got everything I truly needed to from the last chapter and the epilogue, it felt like we were driving towards a climax and then just skated over it. I have a lot of lingering questions about how things played out for Mallory's family and still want to know more about the situation with her father as I feel like we only got bits and pieces of that- oh, and we need more Koch resolution (lol).
◾
Read if you love:
*chess(!)
*authentic LGBTQ+ rep
*he falls first and only has eyes for her
◾
See also: Artifacts of an Ex, The Soulmate Equation, The Girl He Used to Know


I will be posting my review on @manuscripts_and_margaritas in early October with another post scheduled for pub day (11/7) in addition to an Amazon review. My Goodreads review is now live.

I know absolutely NOTHING about chess, but OH BOY DO I WANT TO!

Hazelwood’s YA debut is pitch perfect with a compelling premise, lovable characters, relatable angst, a sprinkle of spice, and BIG CHESS nerd energy.

Maybe it’s Mallory Greenleaf’s age, or switching from science to chess, but being in Mallory’s head and heart was more accesible this go-round?

Regardless, it’s a gem. Hands down.

I tried to read this one but it was a DNF for me. I love the rest of her books but this one was just hard to get into. I didn't like the main female character at all, and that made it hard to get into the story. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

I have watched the Queens Gambit twice because the world of competitive chess is so interesting. I don't even play chess. When I saw that Ali Hazelwoods new book involved chess, I was so excited, and it didn't disappoint. If anything, it surpassed my love of Queen's Gambit cause Nolan and Mallory were so perfect together. It was a perfect unrequited love, coming of age story and it had all the good feels. I loved how when they met, he didn't even look at her until she had beat him and then you could almost feel him fall in love.
Mallory was such a contradiction of character, smart, pretty and stubborn. She takes on the burden of her family so when she is thrust back into the world of competitive chess you really feel for her. She struggles with the love of the game, but it caused so many issues for her in her past. I loved the side characters that are there to support her. Her family and sisters are so spot on teenage angst. The storyline about her dad was so sad and she took so much blame for things that weren't hurt fault.
The chemistry between Nolan and Mallory is so intense. It fills the page very reminiscent of The Love Hypothesis which I loved. It has the same feeling drawing them together and completely made for each other. Awkward and Cinnamon roll type hero with a slightly clueless brainiac heroine. Totally my cat nip.
I always enjoy Ali Hazelwood books, but this may be my favorite to date. The chess scenes were so well done I was sitting on the edge of my seat to see who would win. Such an amazing fast paced read that I want to dive back into the world. I was very sorry it ended.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for letting read this early addition. It was a fantastic read.

I looooved this book!!

It's like the show The Queen's Gambit but YA. Chess, drama, relationships, money, betrayal, it has it all.

Mallory is a former child chess star who gave it all up years ago when her world was turned upside down.

Nolan is the current world champion of chess and known as the "Kingkiller." His biggest problem is his temper when he loses (and maybe how to stanch the boredom created by the current world top 20 he has to play against).

Lucky for us, their worlds collide when Mallory agrees to play in a chess tournament to help out a friend.

After being thrown back into a life she had sworn off, Mallory can't help but notice the benefits to a *temporary* return to the game. Nolan, however, has hasn't had this much fun playing chess in a very long time and is on a mission to play Mallory again.

First things first, Nolan is grade A book boyfriend material. He is thee best. I loved ever moment he was on the page. So mysterious and then a bit golden retriever. It was adorable and hot all the right YA marks.

The chess drama was so much fun. I loved the learning aspect and enjoyed getting a peak inside the game and tournaments.

The family dynamics were an extra heavy topic that I appreciated. The lower middle class representation and a realistic look at what it's like for single parent homes, especially when there's medical issues involved, was refreshing.

What I didn't love was how much they randomly talked about Mallory having meaningless sex and some of the slag and pop culture references went over my almost to head. But none of that took away from my overall enjoyment and love for the story.

I highly recommend this one for Ali fans, YA lovers, and people who enjoyed The Queen's Gambit!

Read if you like:
♟️ Chess
♟️ YA Verging on New Adult
♟️ Family Drama
♟️ Slow Burn
♟️ Mysterious MMC
♟️ He Falls First
♟️ Pop Culture
♟️ Slang/Tiktok Lingo
♟️ LGBTQ+ FMC
♟️Grade A Book Boyfriend

A huge thank you too NetGalley and Ali Hazlewood for allowing me to read and review this ARC! All opinions are my own.

Ali Hazelwood strikes again!! Thank you so much to Penguin Young Readers Group and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I always finish an Ali Hazelwood novel fulfilled and this was no different. Ali Hazelwood's YA debut brings all the charm of her adult, feel-good romances, but the giddiness of an adorable YA romance. Check & Mate follows two chess rivals as our protagonist, Mallory, upsets the reigning chess champion and gets pulled into the life she worked so hard to avoid. But of course, that life brings a lot of charm in a very attractive package...

This book is just so much fun. I had such an amazing time and can't wait for more!!!!

i wasn't sure how much i would like a book focused on chess, but i really enjoyed it! mallory and nolan were cute. this was cute, funny and just another good ya read.

Thank you so much @PutnamBooks for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 07 November 2023)

SYNOPSIS | Mal is a former chess player who is now financially responsible for her mother (who suffers with chronic pain) & her little sisters. She reluctantly joins a charity chess tournament where she defeats the current world champion (Nolan) which leads to an opportunity to play professionally again for money.

WHAT I LIKED:
- the fact I know very little about chess yet I was still super engaged
- love that the rivalry between Mal & Nolan was built on mutual respect rather than something negative
- the sex-positive vibe regardless of experience
- the overall character growth was really nicely done

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- the many MANY pop culture references
- this leaned more towards Mal's growth than the development of a romance
- I think this story would have been even more engaging as dual POV

4.5 Stars.

So close to being perfect, it almost doesn’t matter, the book is amazing. But I wanted just a smidgen more from that ending. I wasn’t surprised, I could feel the natural breakaway, but there was also so much build that I wanted to have it play out fully. Therefore, half a star off. All that is just to say that I loved it so much I wanted more, all of it, every last smidgen I could get. It’s a smart, deep, adorable, and affecting young adult novel. Chess nerdy without being nerdy, in a way. It doesn’t matter if you know or care about chess, you’re going to know and care about these characters. Mallory, and Nolan, navigates that just out of high school time of life, that is relatable, but under heightened and extraordinary circumstances. It’s a heartfelt and charming while also being compelling and clever. I highly recommend for lovers of adult and YA contemporary romances. There’s no limit. It’s great.

Once I started reading this I couldn’t put it down. It was so easy to read as I think this is more geared to YA. There’s still romance and a plot so that’s always a plus! You can tell the author stepped out of her comfort zone but she didn’t let you down at all.

Thank you to the publisher, Author and NetGalley for allowing me to ready this early for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this! It was very different from Ali Hazelwood’s usual books and I appreciated that. I love her writing and she had me laughing out loud more than once. The storyline was unique, but I was honestly wanting more romance! The chess world was interesting and Mallory’s journey was interesting to read about, but I honestly wanted even more Nolan and Mallory than we got. I LOVED Nolan’s character; I would’ve loved to have seen even more of him.

Didn’t absolutely love all of the pop culture references (trust me, there are a lot) and Mallory’s sisters. I felt like Mallory was doing so much and giving so much just to get kicked while she was down and I hated that for her.

I also didn’t feel like this was YA at all??? Mallory is 18, super mature for her age, and speaks a lot about her sexual experience (that’s fine, I’m all for sex positivity) I just didn’t think it fell into the YA category for me.

Between a 3.75-4 stars :)

Thank you for NetGalley and Penguin Young Reader Group for this earc

I am sad to say this book was my favorite. I’ve read and enjoyed all Ali’s previous books so I was very excited to go into this one. It should have worked but it just didn’t. Let me try and explain

At the beginning, I really much enjoyed that we were getting so much Mallory’s background story. It felt like the author wanted us to know her better before jumping into the romance. But about 60% in I realized that we were just not getting enough of the relationship build up. Don’t get me wrong, we got some cute moments but not enough for me to be all in.

Another issue I had is because Mallory takes care of her whole family and Ali’s previous books were adult (I know, this is YA) but I kept forgetting that the main character was only 18. Every time she did something stupid I got annoyed just to remember two pages later that she is still a teenager.

The whole time I was reading this story I was thinking: the point are right but somehow something is still missing. Like Mallory’s Mom, for example. She let her 18 year old daughter take care of the whole family. But even after she gets better, she’s still totally okay with spending Mallory’s money??? And let Mallory pay for everything? Just didn’t feel right.

Mallory’s best friend was also a bit off. That girl was gone for half a book and then just shows up? If you know your friend sucks at communication, you should not call her for two months.

One thing I totally understood was when Mallory freaked out about Nolan sponsoring her. With Mallory’s history of taking take of her family the hard way, it made total sense.

Also, can we please acknowledge the fact that tinder hook ups could have been mentioned less times. Because honestly I don’t think we needed that in a YA book.