The Caro-Kann Revisited - A Complete Repertoire for Black

This book presents a comprehensive, ready-to-use, and high-quality repertoire for Black against 1.e4. With meticulous analysis and in-depth explanations, the author demonstrates how the Caro-Kann Defense can be used successfully by players of any level. He also draws on his experience and on his trove of novel ideas to present a new take on the Caro-Kann: one that emphasizes Black's dynamic options while maintaining a solid and flexible setup.
Francesco Rambaldi is an Italian Grandmaster who currently lives in St. Louis (USA) and plays for the Saint Louis University Chess Team. Shortly after graduating from high school, Francesco was awarded the Grandmaster title after winning the Wien International Open when he was 16 years old. Throughout his career, he found success at a national level both in youth championships, becoming Italian champion in the U10 (2009), U12 (2011) and U14 (2013) categories, and in open championships, becoming Italian Champion for Rapid and Blitz in 2016. Francesco also won numerous international opens including the previously mentioned Wien International Open (August 2015), the Bergamo International Open (July 2016), the Capo d'Orso International Chess Festival (June 2017) and the Panama Chess Rumble (November 2017).
In summary, we have roughly 400 pages of quality analysis with in-depth explanations and new ideas for Black. There is a fresh (and not before time) treatment of the Korchnoi Variation and excellent coverage of the Advance, Two Knights, Panov and Exchange Variations. Of course, these are the lines you will face day-to-day. Rambaldi is a welcome new writer with a friendly style. He is not afraid to disagree with previous authors and present his own ideas. We would recommend this book as a stand-alone treatment of the Caro-Kann. If you have played 4...Bf5 and / or 4...Nd7 and want to freshen up repertoire then why not consider 4...Nf6 ? It is less drawish and more ambitious if you need to play for the full point with Black. John Upham, BCN, Cove, Hampshire, 5th June, 2020