The Queen's Gambit

 

Summary (from the publisher): Eight year-old orphan Beth Harmon is quiet, sullen, and by all appearances unremarkable. That is until she plays her first game of chess. Her senses grow sharper, her thinking clearer, and for the first time in her life she feels herself fully in control. By the age of sixteen, she's competing for the U.S. Open championship. But as she hones her skills on the professional circuit, the stakes get higher, her isolation grows more frightening, and the thought of escape becomes all the more tempting. Engaging and fast-paced, The Queen's Gambit speeds to a conclusion as elegant and satisfying as a mate in four.

Review: This novel is the perfect duo of the portrait of a complicated and compelling young woman and the allure of high stakes international competitions in the form of chess games. Beth Harmon is an eight-year-old orphan who is largely overlooked thanks to her quiet and sullen personality and she seems to lack interest or connection to much of anything. But when the orphanage's janitor teaches her the game of chess, she finds her passion. By the time she is a teenager she has gained national attention for her chess skills, along with significant prize money. However, Beth's life is complicated by her troubles with addiction, first to prescription drugs and later with alcohol. 

This was a delightfully satisfying novel (as was the Netflix series based on the book). Beth is an interesting character but so is her talent; she is a chess prodigy with a troubled past and addiction issues. As a reader I felt drawn to both her personal story and struggles and also had a vested interest in her chess career, which takes her on international travels in pursuit of bigger and bigger rivals. In many ways Beth is very distant and aloof, never seeming to form particularly deep relationships with anyone, even with those closest to her. Even the reader is held distant in many ways and insight into her years before living in the orphanage is never really given. She is fiercely independent, likely due to her childhood and circumstances, which serve her well as she pursues a game that can only be played alone and through her own wits. 

There's little I would change about this novel. It was beautifully executed and compelling until the end. I know nothing about chess and did not particularly like Beth yet that didn't stop me from thoroughly enjoying her story and cheering her on as she sought to become the best in her field through years of dedicated practice and dedication. I did listen to this novel on Audible and was disappointed in the automated quality of the narrator's voice but otherwise enjoyed listening greatly. 

Stars: 4