Ashes Where Once The Fire by Katherine Neville

The Fire, by Katherine Neville
There has been a 200-year-long quest for the fabulous, bejeweled chess set of Charlemagne. The historical and modern people participating in this quest have taken on the persona of each of the different, opposing chess pieces. The Black Queen from the first novel “The Eight” suddenly surfaces in Russia 30 years later, launching the living chess game search once more in the sequel “The Fire.”
You’ll enjoy this sequel, even if you haven’t read the first novel. The children of the previous characters know nothing of their parents’ game, but find themselves drawn into it. Much of the story is told in parallel between the historical actions of characters in the 1800s with the modern players’ actions today. . . .

Link to my recommendation