By accepting the gambit pawn, Black refuses to be put into the strategic bear hug so common in the Queen's Gambit declined. Black clears up the central tension without further ado, and will stake at White's centre at the first opportunity. Recent years have witnessed an increased willingness among top players to take the bull by the horns. In the Queen's Gambit Accepted of the 1990s, the forces meet very quickly, and the better prepared and more talented players will come out on top. This book will provide all the instruction necessary. The Queen's Gambit Accepted was Nigel Short's shock weapon in his devastating victory over Anatoly Karpov. Try as he might, the great Russian champion was unable to control Nigel's piece play in their Linares encounter. Illustrated with annotated diagrams, this book includes critical games played by Robert Hubner, Jon Speelman, Max Dlugy, Patrick Wolff, Jan Timman and Nigel Short.