Good tactic books for 2000+?

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ricorat
Hello everyone! I’m curious if anyone has any good puzzle book recommendations for 2000+ players! Any suggestions are appreciated, except the woodpecker method because I’ve already read it lol.
xjcl

As I am not 2000 I do not! sad.png

But there are [Build Up Your Chess 3, Boost Your Chess 3, Chess Evolution 3] (green covers) by Artur Yusupov (German title "Tigersprung (tiger jump) to 2100"), see more discussion here: https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/yusupovs-award-winning-training-course?page=1

He has equivalent books for 1500 and 1800 which I have

RussBell

Chess Tactics from Scratch: Understanding Chess Tactics by Martin Weteschnik

Forcing Chess Moves: The Key to Better Calculation by Charles Hertan and Joel Benjamin

KevinOSh

The Ultimate Chess Puzzle Book by John Emms is a good one. You can skip the first 100 relatively easy ones and carry on from there. They get progressively harder and the last ones are challenging even for Grandmasters.

ricorat
RussBell wrote:

Chess Tactics from Scratch: Understanding Chess Tactics by Martin Weteschnik

Forcing Chess Moves: The Key to Better Calculation by Charles Hertan and Joel Benjamin

I've read forcing chess moves (it was very good!) but I haven't heard of the other. I will look it up, thank you happy.png

ricorat
KevinOSh wrote:
The Ultimate Chess Puzzle Book by John Emms is a good one. You can skip the first 100 relatively easy ones and carry on from there. They get progressively harder and the last ones are challenging even for Grandmasters.

That sounds like a good one, thank you for the recommendation Kevin!

Verkaley

I ain't 2000 but I heard from a NM that John Nunn's puzzle book was an absolute beast

ricorat
Verkaley wrote:

I ain't 2000 but I heard from a NM that John Nunn's puzzle book was an absolute beast

Thank you for the recommendation! I’ll have to check it out happy.png

ThrillerFan

2020 Puzzle Quest.

The same publisher, under a different title (I think tactics workbook 1 and 2) did basically the same thing for 2021 and 2022. Probably publish another for 2023 games in late 2024.

500 problems per book.

It's the same publisher that publishes Chess Informant

tygxc

Chess: 5334 Problems, Combinations and Games Lazlo Polgar

ricorat
ThrillerFan wrote:

2020 Puzzle Quest.

The same publisher, under a different title (I think tactics workbook 1 and 2) did basically the same thing for 2021 and 2022. Probably publish another for 2023 games in late 2024.

500 problems per book.

It's the same publisher that publishes Chess Informant

Those sound like pretty good books, thank you!

ricorat
tygxc wrote:

Chess: 5334 Problems, Combinations and Games Lazlo Polgar

I’ve heard of that one but haven’t read it. Thanks for the recommendation!

ThrillerFan
ricorat wrote:
ThrillerFan wrote:

2020 Puzzle Quest.

The same publisher, under a different title (I think tactics workbook 1 and 2) did basically the same thing for 2021 and 2022. Probably publish another for 2023 games in late 2024.

500 problems per book.

It's the same publisher that publishes Chess Informant

Those sound like pretty good books, thank you!

I own the first two, 2020 Puzzle Quest and Tactic Workbook.

I am still on 2020. I have done 166 of the 500 problems. They have a star rating, 1 to 5, based on difficulty. They are sorted by when the game happened, not difficulty. I have basically completed January through May thus far.

As a 2000 to 2100 player (USCF), the following is how I see the difficulty:

1 Star - Typically solve correctly in under 3 minutes.

2 Star - Typically solve in 4 to 10 minutes.

3 Star - I typically have a rule of thumb that I don't spend more than 15 minutes on a problem. My success rate here is about 50 to 60%

4-Star - My success rate here is about 20%

5 Star - I might have yet to get one of these right. If I have, it is literally once! They are REALLY hard!

fwh_chess

Valeri Beim - How to Calculate Chess Tactics

Mark Dvoretsky - Secrets of Chess Tactics

Yuri Averbakh - Chess Tactics for Advanced Players

Jacob Aagard - Excelling at Chess: Combinational Play, Excelling at Chess Calculation: Capitalizing On Tactical Chances

alexcolovic

I think any tactics book will help. The secret to very quick improvement is to solve those exercises in your head.
It will hurt your brain like hell in the beginning, but if you persist, you will obtain a level of clarity in your calculations like never before.

I say this from experience. For 1 year I spent 1 hour a day (without a single exception!) solving studies blindfolded (using Kasparian's book Domination in 2545 Studies) and finally crossed 2500 to obtain my GM title (I had the norms from before).

Give it a try and you'll see improvements in approximately one week (provided you do it every single day).

Alex

If you like my writing, consider subscribing to my Substack at https://gmalexcolovic.substack.com/

And if you like my videos, you can subscribe to my channel here: http://www.youtube.com/@gmalexcolovic

I am also one of the best Chessable authors, check out my courses here: https://www.chessable.com/author/Alex_Colovic/

ricorat
ThrillerFan wrote:
ricorat wrote:
ThrillerFan wrote:

2020 Puzzle Quest.

The same publisher, under a different title (I think tactics workbook 1 and 2) did basically the same thing for 2021 and 2022. Probably publish another for 2023 games in late 2024.

500 problems per book.

It's the same publisher that publishes Chess Informant

Those sound like pretty good books, thank you!

I own the first two, 2020 Puzzle Quest and Tactic Workbook.

I am still on 2020. I have done 166 of the 500 problems. They have a star rating, 1 to 5, based on difficulty. They are sorted by when the game happened, not difficulty. I have basically completed January through May thus far.

As a 2000 to 2100 player (USCF), the following is how I see the difficulty:

1 Star - Typically solve correctly in under 3 minutes.

2 Star - Typically solve in 4 to 10 minutes.

3 Star - I typically have a rule of thumb that I don't spend more than 15 minutes on a problem. My success rate here is about 50 to 60%

4-Star - My success rate here is about 20%

5 Star - I might have yet to get one of these right. If I have, it is literally once! They are REALLY hard!

Okay I like that the fact that it has easy puzzles, and ones that I probably can’t solve. I will definitely need to check it out happy.png

ricorat
fwh_chess wrote:

Valeri Beim - How to Calculate Chess Tactics

Mark Dvoretsky - Secrets of Chess Tactics

Yuri Averbakh - Chess Tactics for Advanced Players

Jacob Aagard - Excelling at Chess: Combinational Play, Excelling at Chess Calculation: Capitalizing On Tactical Chances

I’ve read the Aagard books, but not the others. Thank you happy.png

ricorat
alexcolovic wrote:

I think any tactics book will help. The secret to very quick improvement is to solve those exercises in your head.
It will hurt your brain like hell in the beginning, but if you persist, you will obtain a level of clarity in your calculations like never before.

I say this from experience. For 1 year I spent 1 hour a day (without a single exception!) solving studies blindfolded (using Kasparian's book Domination in 2545 Studies) and finally crossed 2500 to obtain my GM title (I had the norms from before).

Give it a try and you'll see improvements in approximately one week (provided you do it every single day).

Alex

If you like my writing, consider subscribing to my Substack at https://gmalexcolovic.substack.com/

And if you like my videos, you can subscribe to my channel here: http://www.youtube.com/@gmalexcolovic

I am also one of the best Chessable authors, check out my courses here: https://www.chessable.com/author/Alex_Colovic/

That’s a really good idea actually! My calculation is pretty sub par, and I think trying this would really help. Thank you for the advice happy.png

queendanna
KevinOSh wrote:
The Ultimate Chess Puzzle Book by John Emms is a good one. You can skip the first 100 relatively easy ones and carry on from there. They get progressively harder and the last ones are challenging even for Grandmasters.

I got this book at the flea market a couple of years ago, and it has to be one of the best deals I've ever gotten. I paid $3 for it and it was in great shape. It's very easy to understand, great for people who want to improve openings There is even one section explaining the chess dream meaning and symbolism - for those who believe in the spiritual stuff.

ChessMasteryOfficial

Calculation: A Complete Guide for Tournament Players