In this collaboration between three highly experienced authors the eighteen best chess players of the world in the 21st century are presented to the reader with four deep annotated games and an illuming portrait. These players are: Anand, Kramnik, Topalov, Morozevich, Svidler, Mamedyarov, Shirov, Leko, Ivanchuk, Aronian (the top 10 January 2008) the stars likely to dominate in the next decade, Karjakin, Carlsen, Radjabov, Wang Yue, Ponomariov and Grischuk, the best female player ever, Judith Polgar, as well as World Championship finalist and comeback kid, American star Gata Kamsky.