"The Safest Sicilian. A Black Repertoire with 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6"by GM Alexander Delchev & IM Semko SemkovPublished by Chess Stars(2006)220 pages - Paperback ould the Sicilian be a safe opening? Is there a miraculous system which guarantees Black a calm life after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3? Of course not! After all we love the Sicilian because it offers tangled play with much greater chances to score than the Ruy Lopez or the Petroff. Yet the variations analyzed in the present book were in the repertoire of the world champions Petrosian, Karpov and Anand. They are famous for their sound strategy and practical approach to chess. The Bulgarian GM Delchev (current Elo 2661) proposes a sound yet aggressive Black Sicilian repertoire, based on the Taimanov system: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cd4 4.Nd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7. As Black, it is extremely difficult to get a playable position without accepting extreme risks. This book deals with reliable positional systems which will serve you for many years, without having to update your opening knowledge every two weeks. This setup is especially effective against the dreaded English attack. The author is one of the world’s leading experts in that field and his recommendations are based mostly on his own games. Without hiding back his secrets, Delchev reveals many new ideas and novelties in his pet line. The authors pay also attention to White’s deviations from the Open Sicilian. There are chapters about 3.c3, 3.d3, 3.Nc3, 3.b3, 3.c4 and other rare lines. The book features a new form of presentation. Every system is examined in a separate part which contains three chapters: “Quick Repertoire”, “Step by Step”, “Complete Games”. Quick Repertoire: You’ll find there all the vital information that you need to start playing the variation. Step by Step: Chapters follow the usual layout of Chess Stars books with main lines that branch into sub-lines. Complete Games: Not surprisingly, this section contains invaluable illustrations from tournament practice.