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“The issue isn’t the app . . . the issue is us.”

A world where social rank rules and your status sets your inevitable course in life — sound familiar? Just imagine if it was all controlled by an app! In Averee’s world, the usual trials of making your way into adulthood come with the added stress of Ranked, a ubiquitous and all-knowing tech innovation that awards you points for socially acceptable behavior and takes them away when you don’t conform. It seems fun enough at first, but it becomes much more than a game when Averee’s rank suddenly drops overnight. Now she’s getting hassled at school, blocked from her favorite restaurants, and her mom is out of a job.

Luckily for our hero, she has Zoe — a bottom-ranked BFF — whose open disdain for all things Ranked makes her the perfect accomplice on what’s about to be the heist of the century: they’re staging a raid on the app’s corporate HQ to set things right and its spokesperson, the virtual popstar Pretty Kitty, is in their sights. With Averee’s crush Luke in tow, these friends are in way over their heads and they’re about to learn that the “right” they’re fighting for may be on a global scale.

136 pages, Paperback

First published April 20, 2021

86 people want to read

About the author

Stephanie Phillips

517 books87 followers

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5 stars
12 (7%)
4 stars
35 (20%)
3 stars
91 (54%)
2 stars
27 (16%)
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3 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Profile Image for Chad.
10.4k reviews1,061 followers
March 26, 2021
This had some potential but tried to take on too much for a five issue series. Started off as a social commentary on a near future scenario where a social ranking app controls what things you have access to in life. It's about a high school girl trying to maintain her rank so she can go into certain restaurants, even take more convenient buses and trains. When for some reason her rank plummets, so does her quality of life. If the story maintained focus on that, it would have been better. But the last couple of issues feel slapped together as they grow in scope about trying to take the whole system down. It's so rushed and full of deus ex machina moments to make that happen. It all felt very contrived.

Received a review copy from A Blue New Wave and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
Profile Image for Rod Brown.
7,419 reviews286 followers
April 4, 2022
In the near future, Ranked is the #1 social media app and it's rating of your worth -- determined by unspecified means, like credit ratings today -- determines where you can work, park, eat and more. And of course, it also helps mean girls know who they can get away with bullying.

It's MeowMeowBeenz, without any of the darkness and humor of the Community episode, "App Development and Condiments." No, instead we get a stupid high school kids vs. giant corporation David-and-Goliath thing. Literally. 'Cuz, you know, the best technology in the world can't stand up against a rock. Really. A rock. I'm not kidding. A rock. A rrrrrrrroooooooooooocccccckkkkkkkk.

The rock is only one of several dumb plot developments and wholly unbelievable coincidences necessary to make this shoddy contraption work, but it's the worst. So I'm not going to let it go.

To paraphrase Ryan George:
"That sounds like it will be really hard for them to get out of."
"No. Super easy. Barely an inconvenience."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah, they just hit it with a rock."
"A rock?"
"Yep, they just whack it real hard. With a rock."
"Well, okay then."

Movie adaptation tagline: "Watch out, Ranked! These kids are about to rock your world!" (Starring, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, natch.)

Hey, kid, is that a rock in your pocket, or are you just happy to see our high tech?

Got rock?

We built this city on rock and rocksssssssssssss!

CTL-ALT-ROCK
Profile Image for Adriana.
3,547 reviews42 followers
March 24, 2021
I appreciate the overall message about not letting social media rule one's life, but it felt a bit like I was constantly bombarded with it.
And then there's the way the plot developed. There are some really interesting points in there, but it's really rushed. It ended up reading somewhat like a storyboard that only hits the important points and glosses over development and setting. I get that it's just a one-shot story, but I'm sure there could have been a way to devote more page time to developing characters and motivations.
Profile Image for Kailey (Luminous Libro).
3,587 reviews548 followers
August 6, 2021
Averee has a fairly high level on Ranked, the app that determines your social standing. But her best friend, Zoe, has one of the lowest rankings in school, meaning that she can't get into certain restaurants or ride on the nicer city buses. Everything about their lives are dictated by their rank, from where they can live and work to where they can travel. When Averee's ranking suddenly drops, the two friends are on a quest to find out why and to restore Averee's rank. But the Ranked app is controlled by an evil corporation with even more deadly plans in store.

I loved this graphic novel so much! The world-building is really cool, and I liked the history of how the Ranked app came to be so prevalent. The adventure is exciting and I liked the mystery surrounding the evil corporation behind the app.

I loved the crazy friendship between Averee and Zoe. They bicker a little and tease each other, but they are tried and true friends. I love the sweet dynamic between them. Zoe is super-fierce and sassy, and Averee is more cautious, so they make a good team.

The art work is really intense and brightly colored. It really draws you into the action of the story, and I liked the character designs.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts, and are not influenced by anyone.
Profile Image for Diana-christie Biancardi.
1,848 reviews36 followers
June 12, 2021
I liked the art and the story! I didn't think I'd like it. Funny how the author's name, Stephanie Phillips, is the same name of one of my mom's friend's she went to college with and her daughter and I are a day apart!
Profile Image for Jessica Strider.
538 reviews62 followers
April 20, 2021
Pros: realistic setting and characters, pretty artwork

Cons: ending is simplistic

In a future where your Ranked app scores decide where you can live, what restaurants you can enter, and how ‘cool’ you are at school, being at the bottom sucks. When the app is hacked and the scores of Averee and her mom drop suddenly, Averee faces prejudice at school while her mom’s job is in jeopardy. A friend’s idea to find the app’s founder sounds impossible, but just might be Averee’s only hope.

Averee is a 5 issue, self-contained graphic novel. The artwork is full of colourful pastels and simplistic backgrounds, letting the characters and plot be the focus. It’s easy to grasp the kind of world an app like Ranked would create, so little world-building was required. Having said that, the cattiness of some schoolgirls is very realistic and sells the setting.

I liked the friendship between Averee and Zoe, whose rank has always been low. Their arguments and resolution feel natural for their age. I also liked the budding relationship between Averee and Luke, the awkwardness of trying too hard while hoping it’s not obvious you’re trying too hard.

The plot is well paced across the 5 issues, and while the ending seemed a little simplistic (I feel like the trio would face more consequences for what they did), I did like the resolution.
Profile Image for Liz.
282 reviews
July 19, 2025
very cool! I dont know if ill read the other ones but i enjoyed this one :D
Profile Image for Jake.
422 reviews7 followers
March 16, 2021
I think I have a deep seated fear of systemic bigotry, this series gave me uncomfortable feelings with how it depicts cyber bullies and stalkers as soon as social media becomes social credit.

The characters were mainly plot elements so I can't really attach to them that well... except maybe Zoe. I can't help but admire people who have the strength to live their best in life despite being on the bottom of the social ladder.

That said, I like how comic creators are willing to tackle hard subjects. This isn't one of those YA rebellion against a dystopia, it's just high schoolers trying to make sense of life when title character Averee has a rug pulled under her life. It's what makes the actions more believable, these aren't child soldiers looking for rebellion, just self-conscious teens trying to help one another out.

In any case, Averee is about high school girl dealing with her social credit score lowering to the bottom one day. What really stands out is how people can and will assert their dominance over people when they have the power. A bully is more vicious than she used to be towards Averee and the school acts like a gated community.

The scariest part comes from how close to life this actually is. While China is the best known case of implementing social credit, the US is making use of it without any concrete guidelines. Go onto social media and the moment you say anything that remotely sounds like a conspiracy theory, even a bad review for something you didn't objectively like, you get flagged as a possible threat. And the corporate powers won't be held responsible.

This series makes me feel bittersweet. I run a website so I need to use social media to support it, I even have to be careful what I post less I lose means to support myself. But I have a life outside of the internet the way Zoe does too. I dread the day government powers give tech companies more money and power than they already do.
Profile Image for Daniel.
2,803 reviews42 followers
June 9, 2021
This review originally published in Looking For a Good book. Rated 4.0 of 5

Imagine a world where a social media platform has such power as to determine who should like whom, who has enough social rank to get the better jobs and even determine someone's credit score simply based on their social rank.
In the graphic novel, Averee, it's not just students who are on their phones constantly, checking their status on the powerful app, Ranked. You can be awarded points for good behavior, but just as easily you can find points stripped away for not conforming. When Averee's rank plummets overnight, she quickly finds herself hassled at school, not allowed to park in the structure closest to school but one a few blocks away that allows for lower Ranks, and her mom even loses her job.

This is devastating for the teen, but fortunately she's got a best friend, Zoe, who's already bottom ranked because she refuses to give in to an app-based lifestyle. Add one cute guy, Luke, who's willing to risk his Rank because he likes Averee, and a team of teens is ready to take on and take down the most powerful social app on the planet. Fortunately they get a little help from the inside.

Overall, I really liked this. The art by Marika Cresta is bold and clear. The inside art is in the same style as the cover as seen here (which isn't always the case). Coloring by Andrew Dalhouse provides nice texture.

The story, by Stephanie Phillips and Dave Johnson, is a little bit simple and the metaphor just a bit too obvious for me, but I can easily see many teens - especially the nerds and geeks - really appreciating this and nodding with recognition of so many of their classmates.

The book is direct, with hardly any subplots (it's told in five chapters [ie comic book issues]), but I think that's to its benefit. Trying to pad this with subplots would have drawn the story out too much and many readers would likely have gotten bored.

I enjoyed this and I recommend it to students who enjoy reading over social media trolling.

Looking for a good book? Averee is a science fiction graphic novel by Stephanie Phillips, Dave Johnson, Marika Cresta, and Andrew Dalhouse that speaks to teen anxiety and social pressures that have been set in place by corporations controlling social media. It is a quick but enjoyable read with very nice art.

I received a digital copy of this book directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Freddie🏳️‍⚧️🐀.
346 reviews4 followers
March 14, 2022
So this had very nice looking art, but that couldn't save the awful story. The concept on paper is alright, pretty interesting but the actual story and execution was really bland and safe.

Art: Art is quite colorful with some good character acting. The expressions feel a bit off, maybe limited. The character designs are really generic too. They looked like background characters. Still good art overall.

Characters: Yeah they aren't very good. They do try to add a bit of personality to them. I do think there is effort in the writing but it just wasn't enough. Anyways the characters are just very forgettable. Zoe seems like a toxic friend, Averee is just bland, and Luke is just there. And the antagonists are just really badly written.

Story: I feel like they don't do enough with the concept, they don't really dive to deep into the world besides oh low ranks can't ride the train, can't park here, etc. It's a single volume comic of course though. But still it really felt lacking, the ending didn't feel earned, and the moral is something I've probably seen before. It's just a dissapointment. If you read the first chapter and don't like it you probably won't like the rest. It's not the most offensive comic, it's just safe and forgettable.


Profile Image for Emily Rainsford.
442 reviews200 followers
April 10, 2021
I really enjoyed this short little graphic novel. It's only 5 issues/chapters, so it's a quick read, but I think it poses some interesting and timely ideas about modern technology and human nature.

I would call this a near-future dystopia, in which your ranking in a social media app called.... well, Ranked... determines things like the job you can get, where you can live, which line you can stand in at the coffee shop. The most disturbing thing about it is that it's really less far fetched than we might like to think it is.

Averee is a lower ranked high schooler who's rank suddenly drops overnight, threatening her home, life, schooling, everything. She and her acerbic friend Zoe, bottom ranked and rebellious, must come up with a plan to fix things before Averee's life falls apart.

The story is short, so yes things feel at times a bit rushed, and the resolution a little too easy in the end. However, I still found the journey pretty fun, the ideas raised interesting, and the ending, while frustrating, felt sadly realistic. I enjoyed my time with this quick read.
Profile Image for Nessa.
660 reviews3 followers
April 1, 2021
Thank you Edelweiss for the eARC! I thought this was kind of a ‘meh’ story. I thought the concept of the rankings was super interesting and definitely reminded me of the Black Mirror episode “Nosedive”. However, for some reason the plot just didn’t grasp my attention or make me care about the events happening. This graphic novel was fairly fast paced though, so it was an easy read. There were some interesting bits about how rankings affected society so those parts fascinated me. Character-wise, I didn’t care too much for Averee’s character and I thought her relationship with Luke was very cringey and awkward. Zoe however was a great character and I loved how sassy and spunky she was. Overall this was a decent story and you’ll definitely like it if you enjoy the whole theme of the dark side of technology.
Profile Image for Isidora.
386 reviews
September 28, 2021
The plot concept is intriguing, but the execution fall short in my eyes. The concept is an app, called Ranked, the determines all social interactions, including getting buildings: from clubs to even jobs. I would definitely classify the plot as a dystopia. That said, the execution isn’t good. I had to pick up the comic a couple of times, not knowing if I was going to finish it, because hidden hold my attention or interest for very long. I did like the bits of romance though. Moreover, the whole plot (except for the concept) turned out to be for nothing. The characters went on a sort of epic quest, just for a new app to take hold, immediately when they return. What was the point of it all? I’m so confused! Moreover, being art is lacking a bit of detail that would make it look more realistic. Right now, it kind of looks like a poorly designed computer game.
124 reviews3 followers
read-comics
July 21, 2022
This tried to do far too much for a single book. It's kind of like if all of Paper Girls was crammed into five issues with insufficient and uneven simplification, leaving random elements with no real purpose. For example: Averee I think there's a good idea here, but it needed trimmed back and spread out a bit more.
Profile Image for Neon .
433 reviews20 followers
June 5, 2023
Five stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to the Whangarei District Libraries for the rental copy of this book.

Art/Book Cover: ⭐⭐⭐ 3.5
At first glance the book cover is eye-catching and gives a futuristic feel which I love. The art inside is very science fiction feeling and is in the old fashioned colour comic style I'm used to.

Plot/Writing: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0
Epic plot! And it's kind of realistic and could happen in real life, in the future if we're not careful with our phones and our apps. I really couldn't put this down and read it in one sitting.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
982 reviews4 followers
May 24, 2021
Neat premise, very similar to Barry Lyga's The Hive. But where The Hive had several hundred pages to tell a story, this tried to do it in 100 or so. Just a little too ambitious. Probably worth reading for someone who prefers the graphic format or doesn't have the attention span for Lyga. The art was great, though!
2,003 reviews
August 16, 2021
In a cross between Feed by M.T. Anderson and the "Social Credit" system in China, this novel covers a lot of social issues but doesn't do a lot with them. The artwork is nice, but the characters are cookie cutter stereotypes and the ending is a little ridiculous. Fun for a "what-if" story, but that's about it.
Profile Image for Ruth.
378 reviews3 followers
Read
July 21, 2022
I put this book down a few weeks ago and just didn't have the desire to finish it. I finally pushed through so I could at least cross it off my list, but I honestly can't summon enough details to really say more than I found it just okay. This concept has been done so many times that it was pretty predictable and it was just not that interesting. I thought the art was really good, I guess?
Profile Image for Amber Greer.
530 reviews1 follower
December 18, 2024
It’s really good! Loved the storyline, characters, and the coloring that the artist used.
It’s similar to the movie “Ugly” in that social media or Influensters are a crucial component to the storyline. Ugly focuses on a person being beautiful while Averee focuses on a person’s stats (like clothes, beauty, etc).
Profile Image for Aaron Harvey.
135 reviews2 followers
June 8, 2022
3 Stars

This wasn’t at all what I was expecting, but I actually really enjoyed it. Also, the ending is shockingly nihilistic and pessimistic even if they do describe it as an upbeat and positive one.
Profile Image for Melanie.
240 reviews
June 16, 2021
The plot happened way too quickly with no anticipation or real development. Would have been better if it had been twice as long. I liked the concept.
Profile Image for D.T..
Author 5 books80 followers
June 16, 2021
The premise was interesting but the execution felt a little dumb. Still fun to read tho. Kudos, that writers are no longer letting best friends be treated like dirt by the MC.
Profile Image for Brianna.
360 reviews1 follower
August 3, 2021
Story and character development were lacking, and needed to be fleshed out more. I'd recommend this if you're looking for a short read.
Profile Image for Lauren.
41 reviews6 followers
August 17, 2021
Loved the premise but didn’t get much time to be invested in the world or characters in such a short volume.
Profile Image for Jill.
54 reviews3 followers
October 24, 2021
So fun and entertaining!! Really makes you think about social media apps and was not expecting the level of action and I LOVED ITTTTTT
Profile Image for Brianna Noelle.
314 reviews12 followers
November 14, 2021
This was a fun commentary on how social media affects our relationships. It was fine. The message was great. The story was fun. 🤷‍♀️
Profile Image for Carol.
Author 5 books9 followers
December 21, 2021
This reminded me of an episode of Dark Mirror on Netflix.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews

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