Catastrophes & Tactics in the Chess Opening - Volume 8: 1.e4 e5: Winning in 15 Moves or Less: Chess Tactics, Brilliancies & Blunders in the Chess Opening

9) Various Gambits 

Short games in chess have always fascinated me; what is it that is causing a player to go so wrong that he or she loses within 15 moves (or 25 moves as in my Chess Miniatures Series)?The games in this book illustrate the making of and punishment of a lot of typical mistakes: 
Loose pawns & pieces 

But the games also include a surprising amount of tactics (see the front cover - White to move), sometimes even missed tactical opportunities. 
I have chosen only from games of players that were rated 2350 and above (or would have rated as such, but it was before the rating system was put in place), because I felt that if mistakes like these can be played by such strong players, then there are lessons to be learned for the majority of the rest us. Further, I sorted away the worst games, such as when one side a piece is threatened and the other side forgets to move a threatened piece, even that happens among strong players. 
Through the study of the games in this book should help you avoid a lot of mistakes in your own games, help you to take advantage of the mistakes of your opponents and ultimately sharpen your tactics and tactical awareness by answering the prompts to the diagrammed positions.
Enjoy!