If you don't like the line recommended in Richard Palliser's "Play 1.d4!" after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 (namely, the 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Qb3 Qc7 7.Bd2 line), you could also consider the 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 line, which scores quite well for White (62% in over 800 games on ChessBase) and which GM Scherbakov indicates is probably good for a small advantage for White. If you are a subscriber, there is a nice, relatively short summary of the theory in this variation in GM Scherbakov's "Exchange Slav and Others.." PDF book.
I quite like the Slow Slav repertoire proposed by Palliser, particularly the suggested lines after 4...Bg4, 4...e6, 4....a6 and 4...g6. I have no strong opinion as to whether White can prove an edge in the suggested line after 4...Bf5 5.cxd5 cxd5 6.Qb3 Qc7 7.Bd2; the positions after 7.Bd2 just don't suit me. I always play a sort of "mix and match" game with a repertoire book, rejecting lines that don't appeal to me (sometimes even if they are quite promising theoretically) and substituting in ones that do. I think this approach is relatively normal and ultimately more productive.
I also like most of the other "major" repertoire decisions made in Palliser's book (for example, the Furman Variation against the QGA, the 4.e3 lines against the Queen's Indian, the Petrosian Variation against the King's Indian, 6.Bf4 lines against the Benoni, the 4.Nf3 Benko Declined, etc.), and I thought he did an excellent job of presenting critical and instructive lines in a limited space. The fact that I am not going to adopt all of them (2.Nc3 against the Dutch, for example, does not appeal to me at all, and I already have a pet line against the Grunfeld that seems to work well for me) is not so much a reflection on their ultimate worth as my own stylistic preferences. I personally feel I am getting a lot of "bang for my buck" from this book because a majority of his suggestions DO suit me (and I suspect will suit other players who have a reasonably active, somewhat positionally-oriented style).
I don't expect one repertoire book to solve all my opening problems, at least not without some additional work on my part. That book doesn't exist, and never will. But Palliser's "Play 1 d4!" has made a favorable impression on me, and I hope to see more books from Palliser in the future.
Cheers.
-Geof
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