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A review by onthesamepage
Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
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