Check & Mate Book Quiz – 20 Questions

📖 Check & Mate: Full-Book Quiz

Welcome to the ultimate 20-question quiz covering the entire story of Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood. This quiz tests your recall of plot events, character motivations, themes, and symbols, plus a few synthesis questions that connect the dots. Each question is designed to be tricky but fair—distractors are based on common misreadings or red herrings from the book.

The quiz is divided into four sections:

Plot & Sequence (8 questions)
Character Motivation (5 questions)
Theme & Symbol (4 questions)
Synthesis (3 questions)

🟦 Plot & Sequence

What is the name of the chess tournament where Mallory first plays Nolan Sawyer?
- A. Philadelphia Open
- B. Challengers
- C. Charity tournament for Doctors Without Borders
- D. World Chess Championship
How does Mallory accidentally open her first game against Nolan?
- A. Ruy López
- B. Queen's Gambit
- C. Danish Gambit
- D. Sicilian Defense
Who offers Mallory a one-year chess fellowship after her win over Nolan?
- A. Eleni Gataki
- B. Defne Bubikoğlu
- C. Tanu Goel
- D. Nolan Sawyer
What accusation does Malte Koch make against Mallory at the Philadelphia Open?
- A. She used an illegal opening
- B. She cheated by making doodles on her scorecard
- C. She bribed the tournament director
- D. She entered the wrong skill group
Why is Mallory disqualified from playing the final match in Philadelphia?
- A. She forfeited due to illness
- B. A cheating accusation is upheld
- C. The tournament director announces a mistake about the pairing
- D. Nolan refuses to play her
During the Chess Olympiad in Toronto, who does Mallory recognize as the arbiter?
- A. Eleni Gataki
- B. Heather Turcotte
- C. Defne Bubikoğlu
- D. Malte Koch
What opening does Mallory play against Koch in the Challengers tournament?
- A. Queen's Pawn to d4
- B. King's Indian Attack
- C. Ruy López
- D. Caro-Kann
Where does the World Chess Championship between Mallory and Nolan take place?
- A. Venice
- B. Las Vegas
- C. Toronto
- D. New York City

🟧 Character Motivation

Why does Mallory initially refuse Defne's chess fellowship offer?
- A. She is afraid of losing to Nolan again
- B. She wants to stay at her mechanic job
- C. She believes she has to care for her family and cannot afford distractions
- D. She hates chess because of her father
Why does Nolan attend the Chess Olympiad instead of the Pasternak Invitational?
- A. He wants to support his friend Emil
- B. He is there because of Mallory
- C. He was forced by his manager
- D. He needs the rating points
What reason does Mallory give for not going to college?
- A. She failed her entrance exams
- B. She wants to become a professional mechanic
- C. She is too busy supporting her mother and sisters financially
- D. She cannot afford tuition
Why does Mallory finally decide to accept the Olympic invitation after her family argument?
- A. Sabrina apologizes
- B. Darcy convinces her
- C. She realizes she wants to play chess despite the guilt
- D. Defne doubles the scholarship money
What does Nolan reveal about his childhood trauma during the winter break scene?
- A. He was bullied at school
- B. His grandfather attacked him with a knife
- C. He lost a tournament because of stage fright
- D. His parents divorced when he was young

🟩 Theme & Symbol

What does the pink-and-purple chess set from Mallory's childhood represent?
- A. Her father's gambling debts
- B. The loss of innocence and her father's betrayal
- C. Her love for fashion
- D. A gift from Nolan
In the novel, what does the Zugzwang chess club symbolize for Mallory?
- A. A trap she cannot escape
- B. A place of forced choices and obligations
- C. A haven for female chess players
- D. A step toward financial independence
The author uses chess phases (Openings, Middlegame, Endgame) to structure the book. What does this structure reflect?
- A. The stages of a romantic relationship
- B. The phases of a chess match mirroring Mallory's life journey
- C. The rules of the chess club
- D. The progression of the World Championship matches
Which real-life female grandmaster is referenced as a symbol of excellence in the book?
- A. Hou Yifan
- B. Judit Polgar
- C. Anna Muzychuk
- D. Nona Gaprindashvili

🟪 Synthesis

How does Mallory's mother reframe the family's past in Chapter 25, and what effect does it have on Mallory?
- Short answer: _______
The epilogue reveals that Nolan and Mallory live together and are likely in a relationship. How does this outcome connect to the theme of “playing vs. winning” introduced in the Venice rooftop scene?
- Short answer: _______
Describe how the author uses the stereotype-threat study (mentioned in the author's note) to explain Mallory's performance under pressure. Give one example from the book.
- Short answer: _______

✅ Answer Key with Explanations

1. C. Charity tournament for Doctors Without Borders
Mallory's friend Easton convinces her to join a charity tournament for Doctors Without Borders, where she is paired against Nolan Sawyer. [Outline Ch. 2–3]

2. C. Danish Gambit
Mallory panics when she sees Nolan and accidentally plays a Danish Gambit, which she didn't intend. [Outline Ch. 3]

3. B. Defne Bubikoğlu
Defne, owner of Zugzwang chess club, offers Mallory a one-year fellowship after seeing her victory. [Outline Ch. 4]

4. B. She cheated by making doodles on her scorecard
Koch complains that Mallory's scorecard doodles are a form of cheating, leading to a dramatic confrontation. [Outline Ch. 9]

5. C. The tournament director announces a mistake about the pairing
Right as Mallory is about to play the final, the director announces an error, canceling the match. [Outline Ch. 8]

6. B. Heather Turcotte
Mallory recognizes Heather as the arbiter from a traumatic incident four years earlier, triggering her flight response. [Outline Ch. 13]

7. C. Ruy López
Against Koch, Mallory opens with the Ruy López; he responds with the Berlin Defense. [Evidence Ch. 21]

8. A. Venice
The World Chess Championship is held in a glass venue in Venice, Italy. [Outline Ch. 31]

9. C. She believes she has to care for her family and cannot afford distractions
Mallory feels responsible for her mother's health and sisters, so she declines the fellowship, citing obligations. [Outline Ch. 4]

10. B. He is there because of Mallory
Nolan admits on the plane that he chose the Olympiad over the Pasternak Invitational because he wanted to be near Mallory. [Outline Ch. 12]

11. C. She is too busy supporting her mother and sisters financially
Mallory's family struggles with money, so she sacrifices her own college plans to work and care for them. [Outline Ch. 1]

12. C. She realizes she wants to play chess despite the guilt
After a sleepless night, Mallory accepts the invitation because she wants to pursue chess, even though it conflicts with her sense of duty. [Outline Ch. 11]

13. B. His grandfather attacked him with a knife
In chapter 20, Nolan confesses that his grandfather, stricken with dementia, attacked him when Nolan was fourteen. [Outline Ch. 20]

14. B. The loss of innocence and her father's betrayal
Mallory cherished the set as a child, but after her father's affair and death, she cannot touch a chess piece. The set symbolizes the connection to her father and the pain of betrayal. [Outline Prologue, Ch. 4]

15. D. A step toward financial independence
Zugzwang club offers Mallory a paid fellowship that enables her to earn money while playing chess, which helps her support her family. [Outline Ch. 4, 5]

16. B. The phases of a chess match mirroring Mallory's life journey
The table of contents divides the novel into three chess-phase parts, reflecting how Mallory's personal growth parallels game progression. [Outline Ch. 2]

17. B. Judit Polgar
Defne has a tattoo of Judit Polgar's winning position against Kasparov, representing female achievement in a male-dominated field. [Outline Ch. 16]

18. Mallory's mother tells Mallory that she is not responsible for her father's choices or death, freeing her from guilt. She encourages Mallory to decide what she truly wants for herself, leading Mallory to nod in agreement and begin reconciling with her family.
[Outline Ch. 25; Evidence Ch. 25]

19. In the rooftop scene, Nolan says being with Mallory makes him want “to play more than win,” prioritizing connection over victory. The epilogue shows them as a couple both in and out of chess, with Nolan qualifying to challenge Mallory in Montreal—thus blending love and competition, not choosing one over the other.
[Outline Ch. 30; Epilogue]

20. The stereotype-threat study shows that women underperform in chess when told they are playing men. Mallory experiences this when sexist opponents like Koch mock her, and she feels pressure as the “first woman” in the World Championship. Defne reveals the study to Mallory to help her understand why she sometimes falters. [Outline Ch. 16; Epilogue author's note]