Check & Mate
In this clever and swoonworthy YA debut from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis, life’s moving pieces bring rival chess players together in a match for the heart.
Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory’s focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious “Kingkiller” Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess.
Nolan’s loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What’s even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory’s victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can’t help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist....
As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren’t only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent…and infuriating…)
- Pages
- 353
- First published
- November 7, 2023
- Language
- English
- Edition
- Ebook
More editions
▾
Pick a cover to preview.
Reviews
Finished February 4, 2024
- Anonymous
Finished December 2, 2023
I loved this book. All of it. Okay, I take it back. I didn’t necessarily love all of it, but I loved the majority of it. I related to Mallory on a highly personal level and I loved her character. I didn’t like her siblings because they were very much ungrateful, and they took Mallory for granted a lot. I have the same situation as Mallory, which made it hurt a lot more when I found out what Nolan did. For some reason, it just hit me the wrong way, and I don’t think I ever really forgave him. The situation with Mallory’s mom I also relate to and that hurt really bad. This is my second Ali Hazelwood book, and I cannot wait to read the rest of them. The only reason this book doesn’t get 5/5 stars, is because of what Nolan did. If he hadn’t done that and done it in the way that he did it, it would be a complete five stars. So, overall, I give it 4.75/5 stars, and I definitely recommend it!
Started November 30, 2023 · Finished December 2, 2023
Finished January 17, 2024
Finished July 31, 2024
Ali is always coming to bat for women in her books and this one is no different. I love that she is always writing about women with real world issues and how they overcome them. Not to mention, the woman knows how to write romance. This was supposed to be YA but it felt very mature. Highly recommend anything Ali writes if you want something intelligent, funny, heartwarming, and romantic. 💖
Started July 29, 2024 · Finished July 30, 2024
Daww... lol this was great, I love how well the FMC is written and the struggles she is dealing with. I wanted this to be more than YA sooo bad, and often times it did not feel YA with the adult language and self proclaimed ho (and bisexual!!! YASSS queen!) MC (you go girl) lol - but I really enjoyed this. Once again Ali has given me a story that was unputdownable. I laughed out loud, I audibly detested Koch-Block, and I felt all the feels for the pain in this one. What a fun read. 🌶️ 1/5 - I give 1 star for the "hint" of spice, once again that 75% mark hit and - fade to black... Ali noooo... stop! Just write adult books from here on out please! The "Ali Formula" strikes again, with some interesting variables in the MMC, so cute:** he's a ten but he's also a virgin**.
Started March 16, 2026 · Finished March 17, 2026
I liked the premise, but this story very quickly turned into a rage read for me. I don’t know anything about chess, but my partner is really into it and pointed out a lot of inaccuracies and unrealistic aspects that dampened this reading experience for me even more. Aside from that, I kept having to remind myself that the FMC was only 18 and therefore still very immature, but the way she handled every conflict was so frustrating. And my god, the inability to communicate properly was AWFUL. I will forever be the biggest hater where the miscommunication trope is concerned. I like Ali Hazelwood, but I don’t think this one was for me.
Finished September 23, 2025
Finished October 1, 2024
no notes. this is the most invested I have ever been (or will ever be) in chess. it's a classic Hazelwood, and those just don't miss.
Started September 18, 2025 · Finished September 20, 2025
Finished December 6, 2023
Finished May 15, 2024
Finished March 21, 2024
Mallory doesn't play chess anymore, but when her friend asks for a favor to play in a tournament, she does. While playing, she realizes she's playing the number 1 rated player in the world, Nolan Sawyer, and wins. Now she's being offered a job to learn and play chess, and she's not sure if she can do it or not. She decides to do it and slowly realizes that she still loves chess. I really enjoyed this story! I don't know anything about chess, but I found this to be pretty entertaining.
