I have always been a huge horror and thriller film buff, yet I don’t often delve into books within those genres. When I discovered that Kylie Lee Baker was releasing a new horror novel, I immediately added it to my reading list. Having been captivated by her Scarlet Alchemist Duo earlier this year, which was truly outstanding, was so excited to get another book so soon. With Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng, Baker has firmly established herself as an auto-buy / read Author for me!

This story unfolds through the eyes of our main character, Cora Zeng, as she navigates her trauma and sorrow after witnessing her sister, Delilah, be pushed in front of a train in a hate crime. Just before this horrific act, the assailant whispers "Bat Eater" and vanishes without a trace. After a brief time jump, we find Cora employed as a Crime Scene Cleaner, meticulously cleaning up the violence and bloodshed left behind by her fellow New Yorkers. As she continues her work, Cora begins to recognise a troubling pattern: Chinese people, particularly women, are being targeted by a notorious serial killer who leaves bats as his signature.

Cora grapples with her circumstances in a city where indifference seems to reign, all while coping with the loss of her sister, whom she always felt overshadowed by. Additionally, she struggles with her own cleanliness and germ-related anxieties in the face of a Global Pandemic. Cora's family issues extend beyond her sister's death, revealing a strained relationship with both her parents: a mother involved in a cult and a father who has remarried and relocated to China. We also meet two aunts; one who brings Cora to church on Sundays and another who tries to help her fend off Hungry Ghosts and spirits.

With limited family support when Cora begins to see spirits and ghosts, she reaches out to her two colleagues, Yifei and Harvey, who quickly become her friends. The connection among these three characters evoked a whirlwind of emotions for me, and it was undoubtedly one of my favourite elements of the book. Each character was uniquely different, and it warmed my heart to see Cora proven wrong; instead of rejecting her or labelling her as crazy, they believed in her and offered their love and friendship. They each shared snippets of their own lives and personal traumas, deepening their bond.

The stark and authentic portrayal of racism, alongside the appalling Sinophobia during a global pandemic, seamlessly blended with ghostly elements and a chilling murder mystery, was executed flawlessly. This book struck a deep chord, as the real-life issues intermingling with the ghostly narrative felt even more horrifying than the presence of the hungry ghosts themselves. I found myself in tears through the last three chapters, and I sobbed while reading the author's note. I urge anyone who picks up this book not to overlook the final pages, as they truly enhance the overall narrative that Kylie conveyed.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I'm always very happy about an ARC and being able to give it a review! <3

The cover (the one with the face and the bat) is so beautiful and the blurb was also very appealing.

Unfortunately, the first half dragged on a lot, which made it a bit harder to stay with the book.

I thought it was good that the book also addressed how much Asian people were insulted and hated because of Corona. They were insulted and blamed badly back then.

But I still didn't find it exciting. Cora was very monotonous and it just dragged on too long.

I went into this book thinking it was a murder thriller, with Cora going on the hunt for who killed her sister Delilah and many other Asian women, leaving dead and living but mutilated bats by the corpses (plus calling them bat eater). Which is definitely awful enough to be horror (and sadly that kind of hate was and is so real towards Asian Americans as well as other races) but then it actually takes a bit of a turn after Delilah's murder and when Cora starts working as a murder scene cleaner (that is definitely not for the weak of stomach!) and adds in a nice supernatural touch as it mostly happens during the month when ghosts come back hungry for life.

I will not Cora weak, she is amazing, able to to still function and work after being a witness to Delilah's death and so even if she has germaphobia (which would make the pandemic time especially hard), I really liked her and the small group she had in Harvey and Yifei (fellow murder cleaners) and how they helped each other and tried to figure out who was doing all the killing of Asian women. There are shocking moments, a lot of bodily gore, and descriptions of gruesome deaths but also love, friendships, and family that can be relied on no matter what (I love Auntie Zeng with all he traditions that she tries to teach Cora).

So yes, this book is very dark and bleak but with good moments too, and has a very valuable lesson in sheep mentality and how bad Sinophobia ideas can blaze out quickly, leaving so many victims in its wake but someone (in this case Cora) can make a difference when they stand up against the bullies and killers. It was a good story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this book.

Wow. I am gobsmacked and shaking.
Intensely gory and bloody. Rawly piercing and realistic. Profoundly descriptive and horrifying.

It is 2020 and Cora Zeng is a biracial Chinese American crime scene cleaner in New York during COVID after she is laid off from her office job. She is haunted by her dead murdered sister who was pushed in front of a train. Hunted by anti-Chinese prejudice. Spiralling as fears of cleanliness and COVID dominate her life.
As if this is bad enough, Asian women are being mass murdered, but the police and media refuse to investigate.

I was just so mad whilst reading this. That first chapter grabs you by the throat and the grip just tightens and tightens until you can barely breathe, barely flip the pages fast enough.

<b>Cora is used to terror, a worry that wrings your organs out and carves holes in you like termites in wooden furniture, but if enough of you is devoured, soon there's nothing left of you but what was, and Cora is starting to feel full of holes.
</b>
What was scarier?
The ghosts or the prevalent racism and treatment of East Asians? Cora’s seemingly descent into insanity or her unease of being around other people?
There is a strong aversion to authority, reminding us of instances of protests, police brutality, power abuse, and copaganda.

<b>And you know what the cops told me? They said that's not enough to go on. We can't just look for white men. You should have looked harder, they said. But white men are going after Asian girls, and that's all they have to go on, us being Asian. No one wants to look harder at us. To imagine that we're real people.
</b>
The character dynamics were great too!

The quirky friendship between Cora and the other two on the clean up crew gave me Ghostbusters vibes. They all try and handle their situations and trauma differently. Food, booze, bleach, sanitiser, rituals.
Also, the contrast between Cora’s White Christian auntie and her superstitious Chinese auntie was fascinating to see how Cora feels she has to shape herself to suit the moulds of others’.

The ending is relentless. Extremely dark. Heartbreaking.

This is supposed to be Young Adult. I would be hard-pressed to recommend this to younger readers. My mind is reeling.

Finally, the author’s note is a must-read. Just a section:

<b>For me, no needle-neck ghost can compare to the way the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world— the way we sacrificed the elderly and disabled on the altar of capitalism, the way trust in the government and the CDC swiftly dissolved, and the way we proved we as a country still haven't learned not to scapegoat an entire race of people in times of fear.</b>

This was a four star read, but I cannot stop thinking about it a week later…. Five stars for the impact.🌟

Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton for sending me the arc in exchange for a review.

I knew I had to write this review the second I finished reading Bat Eater because oh my god, I felt inexplicably scared while reading this. This is not just a horror book though; this is a deeply honest analysis of COVID-19 and how it severely exacerbated racism against Chinese people. The story will make you angry, but at the same time, it'll elicit sadness in you too. Because after all, this is a story about grief, love, family, and fear (especially fear that sinks deep into your bones).

Bat Eater is gory and bloody, exemplifying the sprit of the genre it sits within. There are several scenes, of stumbling upon bodies, of deadly violence that will leave you reeling and feeling a little bit more nauseous than you're expecting. I had to take some breaks while reading this, because I absolutely loved this book, I can be very faint-hearted sometimes. The book expertly shows the paranoia that developed (and still exists, I think) during the pandemic as people tried to make their way through a world that had completely halted.

Through our main character, Cora's eyes we get to experience this thing. At just twenty four, Cora Zheng has already gone through a lot. Her sister is murdered after being pushed in front of a train - that scene is more intense than you might think. Her father abandoned her in New York and returned to China to start a new family. She struggles between her two separate beliefs - being a good Christian girl or believing in the gods that her aunt believes in.

Months after her sister dies, Cora works as a crime scene cleaner, and haunted by ghostly shadows and a darkness that threatens to swallow her whole. The mystery slowly unravels as Cora realises that all of the recent crime scene clean ups have involved bodies of East Asian women. At this point in things start ramping up, as the hungry ghosts haunting her start to show themselves in the littlest of ways, but ways that are frightening. The fear Cora feels is palpable and it settles within you - almost like you are experiencing exactly what she feels in the same moment.

Kylie Lee Baker has crafted an extraordinary portrayal of gore and violence while giving us a skilful analysis of the impact of the pandemic - showing how it altered people's perception of everything in the world and the increase in Sinophobia in the wake of this deadly disease. The writing is thought-provoking and if I can say one thing to end this review, please read the author's note at the end of this book. It forms a very important part of this story.

thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review! <3

’Cora doesn’t hold her breath waiting for justice. She knows better now’

Bat Eater is a brilliantly written and impressively characterised look at racism, religion, grief and ghosts at the height of COVID-19.

This book is just so much more than what the blurb or cover or recommendations ever describe it as. I went into this expecting some creepy hauntings and gory murder scenes, and while I definitely got both of those, I was more so appreciative and taken in by the commentary on Asian hate and discrimination during the pandemic. Embarrassingly, I went into this book knowing very little on the topic. I could blame it on the fact I live in the UK and not America, but in reality I believe at the time I was just too caught up in my own issues to think much outside my own lived-experience. Baker did an utterly fantastic job at highlighting these injustices, with regards to hate-speech, violence and police negligence, and I came out of this book feeling a lot more educated than I did going in. It is an incredibly important topic to keep discussing, and I think Baker’s approach was incredible.

But have no fear, if it’s the horror you’re also looking for, this has it in spades. The ‘hungry ghosts’ are absolutely horrific (think the ‘Bent Neck Lady’ from the Haunting of Hill House tv show!), and genuinely had me a little spooked when I read this in the dark. It’s been a hell of a long time since I was scared by a horror book, but I was actually on edge with this one. The gore was also awesome and disgusting, and everything you want out of body-horror. I’m just super impressed by this books blend of in-depth politics on racial injustice, people’s guts on the ceiling, and a phenomenal and intricate relationship between sisters. Because yeah, this also had just great characterisation? I thought Cora was such a well-developed and engaging character (and I swear it’s not just because her name is Coraline…) and I’ve never seen germophobia depicted in such a realistic and compelling way. Her dynamic with her sister was heart wrenching and haunting and made me utterly miserable. But that was kind of the point? I think? Either way, I loved it. Talking about who I loved, I also I loved Harley and Yifei, and I think that such a small but well-written cast of characters worked so well.

My one complaint would be the final third of the book, which I thought was a little rushed. While I really enjoyed the ending, the final few chapters leading up to it all happened so suddenly and without warning that I just think having them ever so slightly slower would have been beneficial for the epilogues impact. However that’s just my personal preference, and I totally understand the people that gave this 5/5 stars!

Overall, Bat Eater gets 4/5 stars. I cannot wait for this book to be published and I get to go through the awful process of deciding whether to get the UK or US cover, because both are just so cool.

Haunting, horrifying, and truly terrifying, Bat Eater devoured me like a hungry ghost and will continue to haunt me for years to come.

Bat Eater is a novel about Asian women being killed, and one crime-scene cleaner trying to deal with the death of her sister. It's months into the COVID-19 pandemic, Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner, and not long ago, her sister was pushed in front of a subway train from beside her. She's isolated from everyone, including her co-workers who also scrub blood away from the crime scenes of endless women in Chinatown, her Chinese aunt who wants her to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival, and her White aunt who wants her to be a good church-going American. When a shadow seems be lurking around her, Cora starts to realise she cannot ignore what is going on.

I didn't know what to expect from this book going in, but it turned out to be a gripping horror novel that explores the pandemic, racism, corruption, mental health, and lurking ghosts. The novel opens with the shocking death of Cora's sister, really setting the tone for the gory, no-holds-barred story to come, full of horrible deaths and a protagonist struggling with not only grief and trauma, but also the impact of COVID-19 on her mental health as she compulsively cleans and fears contamination. The book is often heartbreaking and horrifying, but as Kylie Lee Baker's author's note says at the end, it also has moments of humour and comfort, particularly as Cora finds herself becoming friends with the co-workers she wanted to keep at arms' length.

Bat Eater is a memorable take on a COVID-19 novel, twisting the serial killer genre into something filled with emotion and the horrors of both the physical and ghost world, exploring anti-Asian racism in America at the start of the pandemic. Straddling horror and thriller boundaries with ghost and serial killer elements, it is perfect for anyone who likes hard-hitting, gory fiction that doesn't shy away from exposing the horrors of the world.

If I could give ‘Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng’ more than 5 stars, I would. An excellent book, one of the best books in this genre I’ve read all year.

It follows Cora Zeng, a Chinese American crime scene cleaner in NYC during the beginning of the COVID pandemic. Cora witnesses the racially motivated murder of her sister and through her work discovers that other Asian women are being killed at an alarming rate. Asian racism, ghostly goings on, gore and a touch of OCD are all very present in this equally meaningful and horrifying read.

The layers of horror in this book know no bounds, made more scary by them being very real things in the world; Asian racism, serial killers and something I have personal experience with, OCD and specifically OCD worsening during the COVID pandemic. The starting chapters which set the scene of Zeng’s germaphobia spiralling and general OCD line of thinking really got my heart pumping.

The language used for some of the gory scenes we get in the book is actually revolting (in the best way). It made me feel a little nauseous at times, which is quite a compliment.

2020 impacted us all across the globe in many ways, but this book really highlights the feeling of isolation many of us felt during that year. The anti Asian rhetoric that sprouted so easily and still lingers now, and I just think this books highlights something so important whilst doing so in an unnerving and brilliant way.

This book is many things intertwined, a ghost story with a murder mystery and a realistic review of how covid pushed an anti Asian rhetoric. I feel my review will never do this story justice because there’s still things I haven’t touched upon that were important; family trauma, friendship. The length was perfect, it didn’t overstay its welcome. It wrapped everything up, nothing is left unanswered.

You should read this book.

The horror is multi-layered in this incredible book.
First of all I got transported back to March of 2020, which was such a scary and unbelievably confusing time in and of itself.
Then we meet Cora and Delilah, both subject to incredible hate and discrimination just because they're Asian American and this made responsible for COVID19 by ignorant people.
And then things unravel and Cora is left alone in her fear and grief, prone to scrubbing her skin and soul raw.
Ultimately other aspects get added based on Chinese mythology, which gives this story yet another layer.
Add some side characters which are truly amazing and interesting, and you get a fully rounded book.

I do not enjoy reading about COVID but this book is both important and mind-blowing.

4,5/5 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @hodderbooks for the eARC!

#BatEater #Netgalley #Bookstagram

Gory, dark, silly and ultimately just really, really sad. Huge Covid flashbacks. Hard to believe that it was all such recent history.

Wow. This book was such a wild ride and I really enjoyed it…as much as you can enjoy reading about gory, depraved acts of murder! The racial commentary provided an insight to the COVID pandemic that I think is extremely powerful, and should be read by more people. Cora and her band of friends provided such sarcastic and dry humour that carried the book through such difficult circumstances. The addition of Chinese folklore provided an extra layer of depth to the story which I think was really welcome to an uneducated reader. Very much enjoyed! Thankyou Cora Zheng!

This book has me hooked from the first few pages, it was haunting, beautiful, gory, atmospheric, and extremely poignant. I found this to be so much more than a horror story, it explores themes such as sexism, grief, racism, family, friendship, intersectionality, and identities. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a horror book that explores the horror of humanity.

This book will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for allowing me to read this book before publication.

I absolutely loved Bat Eater. It follows Cora Zeng, a young Chinese American woman who witnesses the murder of her sister at the hands of a racist during the Covid pandemic. There’s a lot going in this novel: ghosts, racist killers, Cora’s mental health issues, and her new job as a crime scene cleaner. And yet the story never feels overwhelmed by all of these elements, with everything slotting together perfectly.

Bat Eater leans hard into showing both supernatural and real world terrors. The descriptions of the horror elements—from gory bodies to creepy ghosts—are pure nightmare fuel in the best way. But amongst all of this is the story of a girl who is struggling and just trying to find her way in life. Cora’s story is often depressing and the racism she experiences is enraging, but there are moments of laughter, friendship, and hope too.

If you are looking for a really dark and intense horror read with blood, gore, body horror, rage and mystery, read this book. I love @kylieleebaker books and loved this one too.

The details are so dark and filled with blood and gore. This was unputdownable, terrifying and mysterious. Cora’s sister has died in front of her and it was terrifying to witness her death. There is a hungry ghost and Cora constantly feels her sister’s presence. Set against the backdrop of Covid Pandemic. Kora is an asian living in New York and trying to find the killer in the midst of that so many unthinkable things happens that turns her life upside down. Characters were so mysterious and the author has created such a powerful backstories. I felt deeply for some characters. Yifei’s character surprised me and their back story completely gripped me. The ending was so unpredictable. Author has also shared about China’s policy, culture and shared something about America too.

Thanks to the Publisher.

‘Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng’, was a truly surreal novel. It depicts the life of Cora Zeng a crime scene cleaner during the COVID pandemic. After her sister was murdered as a her a hate crime she begins to fall into patterns of OCD, becoming more aware of her surroundings and the presences she feels around her. It is so hard to summarise this novel, nothing I wrote did the plot any justice.

I am not an avid reader of the horror genre and picked this despite it being a bit out there for myself because its themes surrounding the COVID pandemic really intrigued me. I have read very few novels about the pandemic, and I certainly don’t enjoy a lot of the media produced around the pandemic. However, this novel was amazing at encapsulating the horrors, fear and occasional hilarity of a world turned upside down. It was also enlightening as I went through the pandemic in rural UK and the novel was set in New York an obviously busy metropolis. One of the quotes that really had this effect was;

‘There is their dad in China, just a Provence away from the epicentre of body bags. And there is the man who emptied his garbage over their heads from his window and called them chinks on the walk here. And there is the big question of what comes next? Because another side effect of the end of the world is getting laid off.’

Just like I mentioned above this quote combines a mixed reflection of emotions, the clear horrors of the pandemic, the stemming violent racial hatred and an element of comedy as an attempt to self-soothe against a time that was so out of individual’s control.
The novel did so much more than reflect the pandemic though. The body horror was disgusting and completely had the desired affect of making my skin crawl. I was on edge trying to solve the mystery with the main characters. In other words, the generic elements and themes were spot on and added so much to the narrative.

I loved the representations of culture within the book. The depictions of hungry ghosts, while scaring me, tuned me in and I felt like I was deliberating their reality and prevalence to Cora’s heritage and life alongside her.
‘It’s not about my gods or your Autie Lois’s God being the right one. There are thousands of gods that open thousands of doors to anyone who knocks.’

I can’t say that any part of this book was bad to me, no notes.

Thank you to #netgalley for a copy of #bateater in exchange for an honest review.

Cora Zeng is an Asian American living in New York City at the hight of the pandemic, life was already a horror show before her sister was brutally murdered in front of her.

I absolutely devoured this book, I read it on 2 sittings. It was utterly unnerving, terrifying, upsetting and one of the best books I've read all year.

Baker gets to the heart of her characters, noone is perfect and everyone has their own demons (literally in this case). Cora was so fleshed out I would forget she wasn't a real person.

The horror was done in an way which made it feel completely real and like something from a true crime documentary, every grisly scene stuck with me.

Id recommend this to every horror fan, Kylie Lee Baker is an author to keep an eye on in the future!

The sorrow almost unbearable, the horror gory and the story unflinchingly good. Bat eater is set in the covid pandemic the unrelenting horror of this an excellent edge of your seat, nail biter.

I can't thank enough Netgalley and the publishers for granting me this ARC of one of my most anticipated books of 2025 !

"Bat Eater" isn't my first book by Kylie Lee Baker; I loved "The Scarlet Alchemist" and "The Keeper of Night" was beautifully written, even though I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. So, I was very eager to discover her new book categorized as a thriller, which is my favorite genre
This book blew me away. I wasn't expecting any of that. "Bat Eater" is so much more than a horrific thriller!

I was already aware that Kylie Lee Baker's writing was top tier, but she outdid herself: the content is gruesome with gory crime scenes descriptions & other details including entrails, but it's lyrically penned that the sense of discomfort, fear, and disgust are magnified.
As I'm very afraid of ghosts, I was expecting to be widely frightened by this book, and even if some scenes including them were dreadful for me, the fear wasn't necessarily where I expected it to be.
"Bat Eater" portrays too vividly our reality where the real monsters are just people and that's where the true horror lies.

It's a very slow-paced story full of descriptions; you have to wait 40% through the book for the "real" plot to get going. But it was needed to be fully drawn to the book's vibes, which mix our present time with old Chinese beliefs (Hungry Ghost Festival).
Auntie Zeng's briefing and advice about how to handle/treat ghosts and guide them back to the gates of Hell were one of my favorite parts.
The story takes place during COVID and portrays the seriousness of the situation with accuracy.
It may be triggering, but despite everything, it is not a novel ABOUT COVID, but it is used as a setting to tell an important story and unfortunately inspired by a real rise in hatred of minorities during this period.

I don't want to spoil the story, so I won't tell much. Yet, I can tell you that I cried, laughed (a little thanks to Harvey ♡), felt afraid, and was left agape by the end. "Bat Eater" will live in me for a long time.

All characters were interesting and properly introduced to us; some were written not to be liked, like Auntie Lois, and some were written to be loved, like Harvey and Auntie Zeng!
Cora is a very unusual FMC as we seldom see in books. I didn't expect her to be the way she was, and that was a very good surprise (that's why I won't tell much about her). I simply loved her in all her flaws & goodness, empathized a lot with her, and unfortunately -sometimes- found myself in her worst fear & mental state.
Harvey stole my heart: his backstory is more wretched than any ghost story you could hear. Despite all the trauma, he was like a lighthouse in the darkness, always here to light up the day and the mood.
I also loved Yifei with a backstory I wasn't expecting, and I couldn't help but cry; like Harvey, she helped the mood lighten a bit.

If I say that this novel is more than a thriller, it is because, although the mystery is present, the strength of the book lies in its themes.
The author's note is very important to read, explaining why she wanted to write about that!
Bat Eater touches on spirituality, but also faith (we have a lot of talks about religion, how to choose it...etc); of course, sisterhood with the very complex relationship between Cora and Delilah. But the main subject is racism, most particularly anti-Asian racism though. Very hard to read but crucial to open people's minds, to understand that racism isn't just words, it's also acts of violence that can change a life and someone.
Once again, this book made me question about humankind.

"The dead do not forget."

This has the most jaw-dropping, harrowing first chapter I've ever read. It horrified me to the point I had to take a minute before venturing into the second chapter. And, while the book did slow down, it had terrifying moments, amazing characters, and incredible writing. So, yes, five stars.

Bat Eater follows Cora Zeng, a Chinese American crime scene cleaner during the pandemic. As she cleans crime scenes, Cora and her colleagues quickly realize that 1) the 'China virus' has turned the US into a very hostile place and 2) a serial killer is targeting Chinatown and leaving mangled bats behind as their signature. The bats remind Cora of the day her sister was murdered and the killer called her a 'bat eater' - incidentally, the killer hasn't been caught.

This book managed to combine the terrifying aspects of the Hungry Ghost Festival with being Asian in the US during the pandemic. (*Please note that I am saying 'Asian' instead of East Asian/Chinese because of spoilery reasons). This book was scary because of its horrific paranormal aspect, but also because of the brutal real-life aspect of it all: racism and bigotry that is ignored by society and the authorities.

This is my first time reading Kylie Lee Baker and I do have to say they know how to balance very graphic, violent imagery in a way that doesn't distract the reader from the story. It's hard the pull off, and this was 10/10. I also really liked the characters and their backstories: Harvey, Yifei, and Auntie Zeng, they were adorable. The last things I want to mention are that 1) there is a little twist at the end that made me gasp, so well done there; and 2) I liked this perspective on how tricky sisterhood can be.

Content warning for social commentary focusing on pandemic times and being Asian in the US. Racism, serial killer stuff, and scary hungry ghosts.