The man who wrote, "Tactics is 99 per cent of chess," might well have added – "and 99 per cent of the fun, too!"

Brilliant sacrifices and combinations, either calculated in advance or played on the spur of the moment, give us thrills that cannot be equalled by any other aspect of the game. And, by a very fortunate coincidence, these brilliant strokes are just what we need to become first-rate players.

But then comes the practical question: How do we learn to become brilliant players? (Or is this a knack that one has to be born with?) The answer is reassuring: Every chessplayer, no matter what his degree of skill may be, can learn how to play brilliant chess.

The first step toward mastery is to become familiar with the different types of tactical motifs. The second step is to study a great many examples of these tactical themes. So, the object of this book is to add to your knowledge, to make you a strong chessplayer, and (last but not least) to delight you with some of the most beautiful moves ever played on the chessboard.

Fred Reinfeld was a native New Yorker. He began playing chess at city College. While in his teens, he became Inter/collegiate Champion and was victorious in the New York State, Manhattan Club and Marshall Club Championship matches, beating world-renown opponents.

Mr. Reinfeld was one of the editors of "chess Review"wrote more than 50 chess books, and was on the staff of the New York University, where he taught chess to hundreds of students yearly.

Contents
1. Queen Sacrifices
2. Checkmate without the Queen
3. Storming the Castled Position
4. Harrying the King
5. Discovered Check and Double Check
6. Pawn Promotion
7. A Variety of Motifs
8. Composed Problems

English notation