Chess has flourished in its modern form for hundreds of years. During this time, tens of thousands of books have been written about the game, but very few have been works of fiction. Now, for the first time, an anthology of contemporary chess fiction will appear. Masters of Technique has collected twelve outstanding short stories about the royal game, each story selected for its literary merit and the way it captures the psychological impact of chess as a metaphor. As the Introduction claims, these stories will be respected for their style by literary connoisseurs, as well as respected for their content by experienced chess players. Contributors include Katherine Neville, Stephen Carter, Michael Griffith, Paul Eggers, Wells Tower, Patrick Somerville, Edward Falco, Steven Levery, Michael Weinreb, John Wheatcroft, Katie Kitamura, and Mark Coggins. "Chess stories that are as sharp as a mating attack, as cheeky as a knight sacrifice, and as improbable as a stalemate." --Paul Hoffman, author of King's Gambit "A marvelous gathering of literary intrigues...all in the name of chess. Excellent for anyone who has picked up a pawn." --Frederick Barthelme, author of Waveland and director of The Center For Writers at The University of Southern Mississippi. "Chess and chess-like games are familiar enough in literature: think nabakov, Hesse, Zweig, Kawabata. Masters of Technique ...proves that serious writers' fascination with the royal game is not just a phenomenon of the past. This is a collection just as well-suited to those who read books as to those wh read notation." --J.C. Hallman, author of The Chess Artist and In Utopia "Chess and chess-like games are familiar enough in literature: think nabakov, Hesse, Zweig, Kawabata. Masters of Technique ...proves that serious writers' fascination with the royal game is not just a phenomenon of the past. This is a collection just as well-suited to those who read books as to those wh read notation." --J.C. Hallman, author of The Chess Artist and In Utopia Contributors include the following accomplished authors: Katherine Neville ("En Passant"), a New York Times bestselling author Stephen Carter ("Samantha's Gambit"), a New York Times Bestselling author Michael Griffith ("Zugzwang"), Professor of English, University of Cincinnati Paul Eggers, ("A Thinly Veiled Autobiography Regarding My Reasons for Giving Up Chess"), Professor of Creative Writing, University of California, Chico Wells Tower, ("Executors of Important Energies"), one of The New Yorker magazine's Best 20 Under 40 writers Patrick Somerville, ("A Game I Once Enjoyed"), novelist Edward Falco, ("Smothered Mate"), Professor of English, Virginia Tech University Steven Levery("Steinitz"), Professor, University of Copenhagen Michael Weinreb, ("The Curious Case of Sanjay Finch"), Quill Award winner and freelance sportswriter John Wheatcroft, ("The Forfeit"), poet and novelist Katie Kitamura, ("Goodwill"), novelist Mark Coggins, ("The Adventure of the Black Bishop"), novleist The foreword is written by Mark N. Taylor, Associate Professor of English, Berry College. An original, technically accurate, literary collection like Masters of Technique has never been compiled. Irving Chernev edited The Fireside Book of Chess (1949) and The Chess Companion (1969), but the former book, despite being a great work, contains only three chess stories (the rest is non-fiction) and the latter contains only reprinted stories. Most stories in these volumes are over sixty years old. Sinister Gambits , edited by Richard Peyton (1991), and Pawn to Infinity , edited by Fred Saberhagen (1982), contain only mystery and science fiction stories, respectively. Burt Hochberg's 64-Square Looking Glass (1993) contains only reprints or excerpts from chess novels. Other, less popular, chess anthologies have had similar flaws. There's an old maxim among writers that says, if there's a book you want written, then write it (or, in this case, edit it) yourself. This is why Masters of Technique was conceived. Masters of Technique: The Mongoose Anthology of Chess Fiction is the first chess fiction anthology of contemporary stories, ever published. Mongoose Press has collected the best work from twelve of the most talented chess fiction writers of the past decade. In these rich and compelling stories, chess shines as a sophisticated metaphor, and fans of the game will applaud how chess is woven with technical accuracy into every narrative. To celebrate this historic achievement, chess fiction expert Professor Mark N. Taylor has written an entertaining and erudite foreword. Howard Goldowsky is an avid chess fan and student of the game. He lives in Canton, MA, with his wife Marci, daughter Erika, ans son Tyler. In his spare time he works as a freelance chess journalist. His first book, Engaging Pieces: Inteviews and Prose for the Chess Fan, was published by Daowood & Brighton, in 2007. Mark N. Taylor is an Associate Professor of Eng