From the outset, this book is impressive in the way its systematic, carefully crafted structure and engaging written style not only captures the reader’s interest but also offers a solid roadmap leading her/him to gain a full appreciation of the concepts and nuances of varied addiction: behavioral and substance-related. Addictions are defined as covering those compulsive human activities that are driven by the motivation to achieve hedonic states of pleasure that contain neurochemical correlates. Included within this domain are alcohol and licit and illicit drugs, the Internet, Online pornography, gambling and obesity to mention but a few. Setting aside the questionable notion that people can be addicted to the Internet, the Internet being simply a medium through which people can access the object of their desires, this book’s focus lies on trying to understand and explain the processes underlying how and why people repeatedly seek and engage in pleasures despite adverse consequences to themselves or others. Similar to the perspective espoused by Shaffer et al. (2004), and West (2006), the authors adopt the premise that, although the phenomenological manifestations of addiction are diverse, addiction is a syndrome where certain shared commonalities leading to out-ofcontrol reward-seeking behaviours are found. One of the clear strengths of the book is the manner in which the authors attempt to integrate basic neuroscience with psychological and cognitive processes embedded within a sociological and ecological framework in explaining the myriad of reasons why people end up seeking states of ecstasy; self-medication, emotional escape and oblivion, excitement and positive states of exhilaration. These objectives are achieved through taking external substances or behavioural pursuits. The book contains seven sections divided into broad categories of stress reduction, thrill seeking, escape into fantasy and intimacy. The final sections deal with management from an intrinsically cognitive behavioural framework and the production of alternative non-harmful natural highs. Each section is characterised by an excellent integration of biological, psychological and ecological factors involved in the acquisition and maintenance phase of addictive behaviours. The first section of the book sets the basis for arguing that people seek the experience of pleasure through a variety of means, and that this experience is Int J Ment Health Addiction (2011) 9:226–228 DOI 10.1007/s11469-010-9270-9