Fictional books featuring chess

What do you think constitutes "Chess books?" non-ficiton guides or fictional books featuring Chess as a major theme?

I think it depends on which section of the bookstore you're in.

Seriously though, I think it's probably more common for people to interpret "chess books" as non-fiction guides or manuals about the game. But, if you say chess books regarding fiction, you'll find a wide range of genres that include chess as a major theme.

For example, the Ray Gordon books, my mystery series feature a chess player/teacher and include real historical games. I wrote them in a way that readers don't have to know how to play chess, but players of the game will enjoy those aspects. Though some creative license was needed to move the plot along and not get bogged down in minutia.

Here's a link to the first one, Even Dead Men Play Chess, if you want to check it out:

https://www.amazon.com/Even-Dead-Chess-Gordon-Mystery/dp/069243061X

Other fiction with chess includes The Luzhin Defense by Nabakov, The Eight by Neville, and of course, The Queen's Gambit by Tevis, among others. Enjoy!

I recently read Stefan Zweig's Chess Story aka The Royal Game. It's a novella about amateur players challenging the world chess champion on an ocean liner in the early '40s. I learned of it because I read a review of Pixar's Geri's Game that claimed that the film is loosely based on the book.

"The Fireside Book of Chess" contains Fiction and Non-fiction Short stories and anecdotes. There is a new trend among publishing companies, putting Chess themed illustrations on the book cover. But having absolutely no chess related content. It's probably a ploy to capitalize on popular stories like "The Queen's Gambit".