When one thinks of chess, one won't immediately think of cults, children taken from their parents, tithing and cheating. However, this memoir from the COO of chess.com, Danny Rensch, covers all these topics and more. It makes for one of the most interesting memoirs I have read in a long time.

Starting with Danny's love of chess after watching the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer", his story moves along quite slowly, but one cannot help but absorb every word Rensch writes about the leaders of the Collective (the name of the cult to which his family belonged) immediately saying his Purpose was to be a chess prodigy. As a result, he was treated somewhat better than other members, but it also led to him being taken away from his mother and placed in the family of one of the leaders - who happened to be his biological father who before this had no contact with him. If this all sounds convoluted - well, it is and it takes careful reading to figure it out.

Rensch then moves through his life of winning tournaments, finding his soulmate who would be his wife Shauna (blessed by the Collective, of course) and his later trauma of alcoholism, tinnitus and his trouble maintaining his grandmaster status until an unlikely encounter with the founders landed him at chess.com. From there, his life did improve, he did reunite with his mother, but there was another troubling aspect. It had to do with the game and the increased cheating by online players, including those achieving master status.

There are also good sections, written in italics on the Kindle version, on the game's history, the impact that machines made on the game, including the famous "Deep Blue" match with Garry Kasparov. Again, more than what any review could include, it's best to read the book. Danny Rensch has opened himself up and shared practically everything he could about not only his chess skills and his work at chess.com, but also an eye-opening look at life inside a cult.

I wish to thank Public Affairs for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.

As a chess fan—of the game, of the streamers, of the human drama attached to the community—this was the chess memoir I've always wanted. I never knew anything about Danny Rensch's personal life, and I'm guessing most people who've played and learned on Chess.com are unaware that its cofounder's stepmother is the daughter of a cult leader, and that his wife's stepmother is...also a daughter of the same cult leader?!

I give huge credit to Rensch for opening up about his trauma, his physical disability, his flaws, and pain he's clearly still dealing with. It's of perdonal interest to me that chess as the majorly lucrative industry it currently is, where most of its games are played virtually, might not exist in its current form if Rensch had not become disabled. Before the pandemic hit and millions of isolated people turned to chess online, there was Rensch, alone and bedridden with his own afflictions, imagining how he could keep playing the game when over-the-board had been taken from him.

I loved getting an insider's look into the world of professional chess, and for those who are interested in the Magnus/Hans drama: Rensch writes two chapters sharing his experiences with Hans, and I personally came away from the book feeling I better understood what happened during that infamous Sinquefield Cup

I've read 7 memoirs so far this year, and this is my favorite of them all..

I was lucky enough to receive an advance copy of Dark Squares. Danny Rensch’s book is an absolutely fascinating read. This man has led an extraordinary life and is a paragon of how to overcome adversity. I find myself already recommending this book to all sorts of people: those interested in the recent chess cheating scandal and chess cheating more broadly, people with health challenges, people interested in cults, those interested in overcoming addiction, people generally interested in chess prodigies, tech company leadership, or even simply chess in general. If you know and like Rensch as a streamer, this book will sound just like he’s speaking to you and you won’t be able to put it down. And if you don’t know him yet, this is a great book to get to know his amazing story.

Dark Squares is a compelling memoir that blends the intensity of a cult-like upbringing with the sharp, strategic world of chess. Rensch’s story offers a fascinating look at how his early life shaped him both personally and professionally. I was especially drawn to the exploration of his unconventional childhood and the psychological dynamics within his family. While the latter sections discussing modern chess in the digital age were less engaging for me, the memoir as a whole is an insightful and thought-provoking read. Fans of memoirs about resilience, self-discovery, and the game of chess will find a lot to appreciate here.