In Stuck On Hard Mode, the author uses a creative approach to discuss neurodivergence: by comparing life to a video game. I thought it was original and often very relatable. It's a fun way to discuss the subject.

An original and creative way of approaching the neurodivergent world from the perspective of an MMORPG gamer!

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy of Stuck in Hard Mode by Erin Phillips, to be published on March 19th, 2026.

Basically, this is the book I wish I had read when I was a kid.
An Autism/ADHD diagnosis can be anxiety-inducing, especially with the overwhelming vocabulary (and functionality) of it all. Enter this book: explaining neurodivergence using video game metaphors is incredibly clear and relatable. I really appreciate that the book focuses on both Autism and ADHD, showing that there can be a link between these categories. The overall tone of the book is empowering: The idea that neurodivergent people are not broken, just have different “stats.” I also particularly appreciated the section where the author encourages readers to stim if they need to (and offers many suggestions for how to do this covertly if readers are concerned about attracting attention).

My only question is why there wasn’t a quick note at the beginning of the book stating that not all sections may be appropriate for every reader (and that that’s okay). For example, I would feel comfortable recommending this book to a nine year old, but not if they aren’t ready to digest the lengthy section on sexuality. To be clear, the book is very encouraging and repeatedly reminds readers that everyone is different, however, I think some young readers may stop reading if they feel a section is not applicable to them (yet?).

For some young readers, this book will really speak to them and give them great insight into how they move through the world. The author uses “us” and “we,” which makes the tone welcoming and lets the reader know from the very beginning that they are not alone in facing the world (a great message for anyone).

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this e-arc for review!

As a neurodivergent and a gamer, I really enjoyed the way the author describes going through life with our struggles and how we have to do more to even the playing field compared to neurotypicals. If either or both of my children get diagnosed as neurodivergent and find things hard, I would get this book to help them mentally deal with it better since I've always also found it easier to think of life an an rpg and I just have several debuffs and didn't get to choose my stat allocations and build at the start.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review.

Stuck on Hard Mode is a self-help/information book for children/YA with ADHD, ASD and AuDHD told in a format of gaming which I'm sure will appeal to numerous children/YA and help them relate to the content told through a gaming narrative and language. The illustrations are fun and there is some good information within the book but what put me off the book and what I didn't think it contained when I requested it was the information relating to sexuality and gender which I do feel should be highlighted in the books information.

Stuck on Hard Mode is a short how-to guide for teens (and maybe those older than teens) on the Autism Spectrum and/or ADHD to navigate a world built for neurotypical (NT) people. Based on the notion of these people living life on “hard mode”, comes a guide that sounds much like a MMORPG manual. Using terms like “level” for age, it’s written much like you’re playing a game, but in life.exe, you only have one and there’s no respawns. While this wording might appeal to a certain crowd, I didn’t entirely vibe with it, even though I’m a gamer. Otherwise, this is a great guide for teens to navigate the real world with their unique traits (termed stats) and how to make things easier in many aspects of life. I do like that the author is an older autistic that had to learn life without knowing they were on hard mode and speaks very much like a mentor. The most important thing is that the teens know that they aren’t broken, just different with their own challenges, which might seem harder in this NT world. Part of me wished this existed when I was a teen. Highly recommended!

As someone who is AuDHD, this book feels so wonderful to have! For a long time, I've searched books about Autism and ADHD to help me improve my life. While the advice would overlap, there wasn't much about someone with both conditions. In fact, some sources drew a hard line between the two-urging readers not to mix up the two conditions due to similar symptoms. What is a someone with AuDHD -essentially mixed up-to do? Wait for a book like this to come out!

I loved the explanation of life-as Life.exe the game we are all playing. However, the game was built for the neurotypical (NT) folks with neurodiverse (ND) folks feeling like broken NT builds. Yet this book helps show that is not the case-we can thrive and win at our Main Quest-whatever that is for folks that are Autistic, ADHDers, and AuDHDers. It's a matter of knowing how the mind works and working with it to help us thrive-it's not a matter of pushing ourselves to Burnout status to match others. With the game analogy, it really breaks down aspects of Austitic, ADHD, and AuDHD life-such as various stats and statuses- such Luck being level of privilege, Bandwidth being mental energy and Burnout being a status that you can recover from if you truly take care of yourself. Knowing that I’m not a broken NT, just a different build as an AuDHDer is so nice and comforting!
For a target audience, I’d say this would mainly be more middle school/ young adult mainly because the examples use characters or ‘builds’, that are either trying to get into university, struggling in class, or in relationships. Most of the art depicts teenagers/young adults as well. Still, I fell like it could be good for any age willing to learn about Autism, ADHD, and AuDHD.

Overall, I highly recommend this to anyone with Autism, ADHD, or both, or to family and friends that want to understand the neurodiverse in their life. I really look forward to seeing this book in stores!

Overall, this book was informative and helpful--reframing the neurodivergent experience and challenges. The analogy to being stuck on "hard mode," as well as life being like a video game was interesting.

I really enjoyed this engaging and humorous look at Neurodiversity and how to manage it. It definitely spoke more toward teens and you g adults, but I can see how it might be helpful to adults as well. The gamer RPG of aspect of it was clever and fun, and the illustrations were cute and very inclusive, which I liked. Overall it was a good read that I highly recommend to Young Adults with a neurodivergent mind!

Thanks to Jessica Kingsley Publishers for providing an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Stuck on Hard Mode by Erin Phillips is a funny guide for autistic people playing the game of life. Presenting life as a game, it is a strategy guide to help ADHD/autistic teens live a life that feels much harder to navigate than for neurotypical people. It covers topics such as gender and self-expression; dealing with burnout, meltdowns and time blindness; taking care of your sensory and emotional needs; and much more.

I am not a teen, so I am not the intended audience for this book, but having read a lot of advice and self help books for autistic people, I feel that the author has done a good job selecting and presenting advice that is relevant to teens, and presents it in a way that I would have found tremendously helpful when I was younger.

I find myself being very excited about this book being for both ADHD teens as well as autistic teens (and those that are both), because a lot of the advice that is out there tends to be aimed at either one or the other. I would not be surprised if this book being about both might lead some teens to realise that they might not be only one of the two, but in fact both.

Each chapter is divided into fairly short sections and subsections, which makes it an accessible read, and also has some asides with additional facts and Helpful Hints. The end of every chapter has a short summary, which really helps to lock in the most important parts of the text (separating out the main points in a text is something that some autistic people struggle with!).

The only drawback that I noticed while reading is that the author talks about both life as a game metaphorically, but also about actual games. This is sometimes a little bit confusing while reading, but does not ultimately stand in the way of good advice.

I would recommend this book to any nerdy autistic/ADHD teen that needs some guidance about living lives that work for them.

Stuck on Hard Mode is a smart, accessible introduction to ADHD and autism through a video game lens, Erin Phillips uses familiar gaming language to explain neurodiversity in a way that feels clear, modern, and easy to grasp. For example, she describes distractions as side quests and debuffs, and compares stimulants to fast-acting power-ups and non-stimulants to slower power-ons with longer-lasting effects.

What makes the book stand out is how practical and approachable it is. The gaming framework makes complex ideas easier to understand for teens, adults, and anyone with at least a little video game literacy.

Phillips also uses that lens in creative ways, including describing romance and relationships as side quests, quest chains, or quest lines, which helps translate social dynamics into something more concrete.

The book also goes beyond the usual introductory discussion by addressing masking, late diagnosis, gender identity, racism, and socioeconomic status, and how those factors can shape the way neurodivergence is experienced. Even with existing knowledge of ADHD, there were still new insights here. Thoughtful, timely, and original.

Stuck on Hard Mode is a 144-page extended metaphor, and while that metaphor occasionally falters, overall I found it surprisingly effective (and that's speaking as a very casual gamer). The one step remove from the way information about neurodivergence is typically communicated helps the same information to feel fresh and engaging and, perhaps more importantly, it does quite a good job of separating the experiences of neurodivergence from value judgments. Doing so allows readers the space to consider what fits them and what doesn't, and to gather helpful tips from a neurodivergent mentor when they find something that resonates.

As for content, the book will likely best fit the interests of older teens, as especially the later chapters put a fair amount of emphasis on considering possibilities for adult life and learning skills necessary for independence. However, there's plenty of information on topics that will be relevant to younger (and older) readers as well, such as exploring your identity, understanding and meeting your needs for different types of accommodations, and how different kinds of ADHD medications function if your doctor suggests giving them a try. The book has a lot of potential to grow with a young reader, meeting different needs at different stages. I also really liked that the book both included and differentiated autism, ADHD, and combined AuDHD throughout—something that's still rare in the proliferation of guides to neurodivergent life we've seen on shelves lately.

This book is perfect for anyone who is neurodivergent, who loves someone who is neurodivergent, works with someone who is neurodivergent, or... just anyone. Read it.

For people who are neurodivergent- this book really gives helpful information for maneuvering through daily life and all of it's challenges in a way that is fun AND informative. Information is written like a game walkthrough which will appeal to many readers.

The really amazing thing about this book, is that this b0ok is approachable for almost everyone. It can help people understand what someone goes through regularly when trying to fit in and just make sure everything gets done that needs to get done. The way masking is described, as different avatar skins is genius.

Personally- I plan to purchase a copy for my own 13 year old son and will recommend my work (HS library) purchase this.