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memoirsofabooklover's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Sexism, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Misogyny
Minor: Dementia, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Car accident, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, and Outing
cibani's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Infidelity, Dementia, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Car accident, Chronic illness, and Sexism
boomwormbrittany's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Thank you Ali Hazelwood and Putnam for choosing me to win an ARC of this book in Ali's newsletter giveaway! All opinions are my own.
Check & Mate follows Mallory Greenleaf who is done with chess. Instead she is focused on making sure her family stays afloat. But when a chance encounter and game with the top ranked player in the world, Nolan Sawyer, Mallory finds herself pulled into the world of chess again.
God I love Ali Hazelwood's books so much. Every time I pick up one of her books I find myself completely addicted to the story and wanting to know more. There was points where I was reading this at night and delayed going to bed because I wanted to know what was going to happen next.
The only reason this got a quarter of a star off is I wish that we had seen more of Nolan and Mallory's relationship but I also know this was more about Mallory's journey than their relationship aspect.
But lets talk about the scenes we got with them in? The tension was so good! I swear Ali is a master of writing tension and he falls first! When Nolan and Mallory were in the same room together you can just feel the tension and the way they were so attracted to each other, I loved it!
There was one scene that I found so satisfying that I am not going to spoil but had me cheering for Mallory. She's the main breadwinner of her family and doing so much for them. I thought it was interesting how Ali decided to tell that part of the story and I loved it.
I'm not really a huge chess person despite being in chess club for a bit when I was a kid. However, this was so interesting to learn that there is so many different strategies and games that chess people know about. It blew me away and I felt like I learned so much reading this book.
I loved this book so much and I cannot recommend picking it up enough! It was such a good contemporary romance novel and another hit from Ali.
Check & Mate follows Mallory Greenleaf who is done with chess. Instead she is focused on making sure her family stays afloat. But when a chance encounter and game with the top ranked player in the world, Nolan Sawyer, Mallory finds herself pulled into the world of chess again.
God I love Ali Hazelwood's books so much. Every time I pick up one of her books I find myself completely addicted to the story and wanting to know more. There was points where I was reading this at night and delayed going to bed because I wanted to know what was going to happen next.
The only reason this got a quarter of a star off is I wish that we had seen more of Nolan and Mallory's relationship but I also know this was more about Mallory's journey than their relationship aspect.
But lets talk about the scenes we got with them in? The tension was so good! I swear Ali is a master of writing tension and he falls first! When Nolan and Mallory were in the same room together you can just feel the tension and the way they were so attracted to each other, I loved it!
There was one scene that I found so satisfying that I am not going to spoil but had me cheering for Mallory. She's the main breadwinner of her family and doing so much for them. I thought it was interesting how Ali decided to tell that part of the story and I loved it.
I'm not really a huge chess person despite being in chess club for a bit when I was a kid. However, this was so interesting to learn that there is so many different strategies and games that chess people know about. It blew me away and I felt like I learned so much reading this book.
I loved this book so much and I cannot recommend picking it up enough! It was such a good contemporary romance novel and another hit from Ali.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent
desana75's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism, Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
onthesamepage's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Tropes:he falls first, first time, third act breakup
Ali Hazelwood probably works better for me in the YA sphere. I usually enjoy her writing, but I noticed that it suits younger characters better in general. I think this is my favourite book of hers so far, but you do need to read this with some suspension of disbelief. I'm not familiar with how the chess world operates, but I'm 99% sure it's not like this.
It didn't really matter, though. It's easy to root for Mallory as she fights against her own complicated feelings when it comes to chess, and then the misogyny that's so rampant within that world. I loved watching her win match after match, climbing steadily higher. All the chess parts were fun to read, and I breezed through them.
The romance is pretty good, too, until it isn't. I wish we hadn't gotten another iteration of Adam Driver, but overall I liked Nolan, even though he doesn't feel fully fleshed out as a character. This probably has to do with the book being first person POV from Mallory's perspective, which means we get to see a lot more of her, her family, and her friends—all of which helps to paint a full picture of her. That said, the parts of Nolan we got to see were all good. I liked that he didn't care that Mallory was better than him, and that he wanted to support her instead. The way their relationship progressed was solid, until the ridiculous third act breakup (which, I guess, is another Ali Hazelwood staple at this point). The ending was also pretty abrupt—I wish we'd been able to see the match play out, because there sure was a lot of buildup towards it.
Tropes:
Ali Hazelwood probably works better for me in the YA sphere. I usually enjoy her writing, but I noticed that it suits younger characters better in general. I think this is my favourite book of hers so far, but you do need to read this with some suspension of disbelief. I'm not familiar with how the chess world operates, but I'm 99% sure it's not like this.
It didn't really matter, though. It's easy to root for Mallory as she fights against her own complicated feelings when it comes to chess, and then the misogyny that's so rampant within that world. I loved watching her win match after match, climbing steadily higher. All the chess parts were fun to read, and I breezed through them.
The romance is pretty good, too, until it isn't. I wish we hadn't gotten another iteration of Adam Driver, but overall I liked Nolan, even though he doesn't feel fully fleshed out as a character. This probably has to do with the book being first person POV from Mallory's perspective, which means we get to see a lot more of her, her family, and her friends—all of which helps to paint a full picture of her. That said, the parts of Nolan we got to see were all good. I liked that he didn't care that Mallory was better than him, and that he wanted to support her instead. The way their relationship progressed was solid, until the ridiculous third act breakup (which, I guess, is another Ali Hazelwood staple at this point). The ending was also pretty abrupt—I wish we'd been able to see the match play out, because there sure was a lot of buildup towards it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent
Minor: Infidelity
alli_the_bookaholic13's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Chronic illness, Car accident, Dementia, and Mental illness
keelymightread's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Car accident, Sexism, and Misogyny
Minor: Death of parent and Cancer
leonorb's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent
thelibbyshow's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Did I finish this in one day? Yes, yes I did.
I really tried not to, but that Ali Hazelwood did it again. This might be my favorite book of hers yet.
I really tried not to, but that Ali Hazelwood did it again. This might be my favorite book of hers yet.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content and Death of parent
Minor: Mental illness
astridrc's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Ali Hazelwood just keep getting better and better. This is her first YA novel and though I kind of missed the spice the chemestry these MC had made up for it. I've read so many spicy books in which the romance was just so bland, felt so inauthentic. Miss Hazelwood never fails in that regard.
There are so many side characters and they're all so fun and essential to the story.
And obviously, the whole chess setting was incredibly interesting and fun.
Overall, this was fun, insightful, full of postive, healthy messages. It's honestly all I want from a romance book.
There are so many side characters and they're all so fun and essential to the story.
And obviously, the whole chess setting was incredibly interesting and fun.
Overall, this was fun, insightful, full of postive, healthy messages. It's honestly all I want from a romance book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexism, Infidelity, and Death of parent