Not my personal favourite graphic novel, the illustrations are very good and are very emotive. The narrative wasn’t 100% clear or easy to follow but the general idea is good and I think I’d retry this another time

This seems like a cute graphic novel about a woman who needs to find work and is having trouble getting out the house on time for her job meeting…but once you get into it, I found it a lot more confusing than that.

I had big trouble telling the different protagonists and storylines apart, it took me quite some time to realise that I was following a different character for each part. I also didn’t know who was speaking to whom. This left me so confused that I finally gave up. I am really sorry because I wanted to like this graphic novel so much.
Also the text was super small which made it hard to read, there was also no massive difference in drawing between the characters which also didn’t help being able to tell who was who.

This amazing cover had me intrigued and I wasn’t disappointed !

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read this title in exchange for my feedback.

I love the simple style of the artists, clean lines and adorable characters, though a little bit of distinguishing details will help tell apart the numerous characters in this novel. It’s hilarious in some scenes, heart warming in some, and though provoking in others. It starts off a bit slow, but is worth it if you stick with it! Young millennials and other folks in their. Terrible twenties will find a lot to relate with and that’s what endears this novel to me.

Why I picked the book: I have known and liked Emily McGovern’s webcomics for years. This new book by her sounds fun and right up my alley.

Conclusion: Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I heard it described as slow, at least in the beginning and that was definitely one problem for me. However, my biggest problem was that I had big trouble telling the different protagonists and storylines apart. It took me quite some time to realise that I was following a different character and who was speaking to whom. This left me so confused that I finally gave up. I am really sorry because I wanted to like this graphic novel so much.

An extensive and humorous deep dive into a fictional world not unlike our own full of real world problems and humanity at its worst and best.

Emily McGovern has real talent. The story will have a profound connection with a lot of people reading it. There is something in this graphic novel for everyone. Whether that be the go-getting business person or someone fighting for their right to be in the country. There are even nods to technological dependency and corporate control that ensure multiple angles of the story are engaging and thought-provoking.

The art style is very simple but gorgeous. Beautiful in its simplicity, some may say. Emily manages to portray an incredible range of emotions in characters missing basic facial features like mouths. This shows real skill, it's not an easy task in a graphic novel to connect the reader with thoughts and feelings and Emily puts superb technique to work throughout the story.

Twelve Percent Dread is a graphic novel of perspective and I believe if ten different people read this book, they would all find different attachments and take from it, different points of view. I would highly recommend this to fans of graphic novels, pure humanity, real world issues and just general fans of excellently structured stories.

The more I read of it the more I love Emily McGovern’s work. I adored Bloodlust and Bonnets and I think I enjoyed Twelve Percent Dead even more.

First lets talk art style. I really love the slightly strange mask like way McGoven draws people, with such a simple style she managed to get a lot of movement and detail into the characters, they are all unique and diverse and really jump off the page. I like the choice to use minimal colouration in this novel, also the stylistic choice of little panels instead as sweeping set pieces. This made it easy to follow, I loved all the little interstitials linking back to the social media of the characters from how many notifications they got to them quickly checking who liked their most recent posts.

The story itself was great, just enough into the dystopian to really highlight the issues it was tackling and oh did it manage to cover a lot, from out dependency on technology/social media, tech giants gaining to much power, political corruption, MLMs, immigration, all various types of relationships the list of what it covered just keeps going yet all of it seems to have a place in this story. I really adored the relationships and how detailed they managed to be with so few words and just a few panels to convey their depth. It really astounds me how deep a connection can be built with characters in such simple yet beautiful artwork.

Twelve Percent Dread just perfectly captures the state of life in your 20s/30s right now with all the hopelessness and ennui that brings but also the areas of light and whimsy and laughter that Emily McGovern brings to her work. I found myself laughing in recognition of various characters that are subtly slid into some scenes and how it perfectly captures the messiness of life.

Overall I really loved this, I have already persuaded friends to read it knowing they will love it too.

📱Tᗯᗴᒪᐯᗴ ᑭᗴᖇᑕᗴᑎT ᗪᖇᗴᗩᗪ📱


Katie and Nas are best friends, exes, and co-dependents. They share everything, including a tiny room in a North London townhouse belonging to their landlord, Jeremy, former host of the hit 90s show Football Lads.
While Katie bounces from job to job and obsesses about falling behind in life, Nas has bigger things in mind, such as waiting endlessly for their visa to come through and working on a seismic art project that will revolutionize politics and society as we know it.
Their friend Emma, meanwhile, seems to have it all figured out – job, mortgage, engagement – yet the long hours working for tech giant Arko and endless wedding admin have left her similarly anxious and unsatisfied.
But when Katie’s latest job finds her tutoring the daughter of Arko’s formidable CEO, and Emma welcomes the eccentric and enigmatic Alicia to her team at Arko, neither are aware that all of their lives – and possibly the future of society itself – are about to change forever . . .

I really enjoyed this graphic novel and despite it’s hefty size, flew through it in two days.
Arko reminds me of a certain huge tech company and the apps that are created to keep us on our phones and convince us that they are ‘helping’ us.
It also reminded me of The Devil wears Prada, Arko’s creator is quite Miranda Priestly-esque!
My favourite character was Katie, trying to find a job, trying to pay her bills, trying to help Nas (who never seems to help anyone!)
If you enjoy satirical humour and great artwork then this is the book for you!
🌟🌟🌟🌟 for this fun read
Twelve Percent Dread publishes on the 23rd June

A satirical comic based on modern capitalism, agency work, anxiety and the Visa process. This graphic novel provided social commentary on one persons need for a job, mirrored with the other who has a job that's accelerating at such s[eed there's no time for sleeping!

Highlighting today's habit of 'doomscrolling' and the face-in-the-phone socialising era - we're never far from a screen, and have an impending dread; may it be work, money, life or love related we feel like we're teerting on the edge, as if we have 12% battery left, and we're waiting on that all important phone call.

I enjoyed the monochromatic art style and the simplistic drawing style. The colour palette was very reminiscent of messages on a phone screen, which added to the smartphone satire throughout.

Thank you Picador, Pan Macmillan & Netgalley for the opportunity to read an excerpt of this upcoming Graphic Novel!

Content warning: Profanity (C word)

Katie is overworked and underpaid. Her ex Nas is still trying to find his big break and get a permanent visa.
Emma looks like she's got it together, but her boss just went down for corruption and the company is more like a tech cult at this point.
And they're all filling with total dread.

Drawn with a strikingly unique style, it's beautiful simplicity allows the story to shine through. It's a stunning mix of young people trying to find their place in life and feeling behind, and the potential sci-fi dystopia that could be reality once mega-corporations take over and technology evolves too far.

Refreshingly honest, wickedly funny and deeply emotive - this is why I'm so happy Graphic Novels are becoming more accessible.

Chaos in graphic novel form! Katie and Nas are both aimlessly wading through life but when each character join their friend Emma are drawn into Arko CEO Michelle’s bubble they have no choice but to ride that exceedingly unhinged wave.

The concept of never putting your phone down is abundantly obvious in this story and it does make you realise how much you miss having your nose buried in it but yet here I am back on mine writing this review. Emily McGovern's book should be widely shared with teenagers and Politician's alike.

A huge thank you to Black Crow PR for providing me with an ARC. I look forward to seeing where the story progresses.

I ADORE 'My Life as a Background Slytherin' and everything Emily McGovern is able to achieve with her art. The subtle nuances of her drawings convey such emotion and hilarity. I am always in awe of how she can achieve so much in just a few frames.

After reading this sampler for 'Twelve Percent Dread', I am desperate to read the rest. The set-up with the tech company Arko and the domineering CEO Michelle was absolutely brilliant. Her interview on the BBC, where the interviewer tries to hold her company to account on all its corruption, and its aftermath is not only a disturbing mirror for reality but also had me laughing out loud. I cannot wait to read the rest of this to see how Katie and Emma's friendship develops amidst the corporate chaos of Arkon. I pre-ordered this immediately after reading - only a few weeks to wait!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided a sampler of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The art style of this graphic novel was new to me and it took me a while to get used to and honestly I’m not 100% sure I am

I like that it focuses on anixety, there was a lot of scenes that were really relatable, mainly the part of her on the bus searching up interview tips…. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to search up places and tips before I get there

Only giving 3 stars on the basis the art style takes away from the point and plot of the story


Thank you netgalley and publishers for let me read this arc

I would like to thanks Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for sending me small preview of this book in exchange for an honest review. I will be honest this book wasn't for me, I found the style of the book all over the place and I found the font hard to read. This might be different on paper but as an e-arc it was very small.

Thank you to Pan Macmillan, Picador for the exclusive sampler and a chance to peek at Twelve Percent Dread. I really liked what I got too see and loved how the simple graphics contrasted with the serious and anxiety riddled storyline. I look forward to reading a full copy of this graphic novel!

Received a short exert of the book from Netgalley. I find the artwork and layout of the comic quite chaotic which makes it difficult to get into the story. I think the message of the book is good.