The Royal Game cover art

The Royal Game

A Chess Story

 Preview

Get 30 days of Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30-day free trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £7.99

Buy Now for £7.99

About this listen

The fame of the The Royal Game is evident in the number of translations. The last work of the Austrian writer Stefan Zweig can be read today in over 60 languages. The first translation into English appeared in New York in 1944. In Germany, the book has become a constant bestseller. The first-person narrator learns of the presence of the world chess champion Mirko Czentovic on a boat trip from New York to Buenos Aires. Together with his acquaintance Mc Connor and other chess players, the first-person narrator manages to challenge the world champion to a game of chess.

As expected, Mc Connor and the others clearly lose the first game. In the second game, the only way they can get is with the help of a strange man who later turns himself into Dr. B imagines preventing an embarrassing defeat at the last moment and getting a draw. Fascinated by the talent of Dr. B's, the first-person narrator asks him to take on Czentovic. Dr. B. agrees. During the conversation, Dr. B. under what tragic circumstances he started playing chess.

©2020 Aureon Verlag GmbH (P)2020 Aureon Verlag GmbH Chess Classics Game
All stars
Most relevant
An interesting story, with some vivid situations, and although I found the reading rather stilted, with emphasis evenly and awkwardly on every word, it didn’t really affect my enjoyment of the story.

Stilted reading but good story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fascinating story but awful narration. The narrator’s voice is voice affected and distracting, thus detracting from the reader’s / listener’s experience.

Fascinating story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Love this book. What a delightful surprise. A splendid story, so well written. I recommend it.

Excellent!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.