Cora Zeng is an unforgettable character trying to handle grief, a crime-scene cleaning job, conflicting family obligations, and the mystery of who is targeting and killing Asian women. It is a masterful work of fiction focusing on the real world horrors of racism amidst a pandemic, alongside more speculative horror elements. I found this to be a deeply disturbing read, with my emotions vacillating between tension, sadness, and dread. This is exactly what I look for in my horror books and I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for social commentary and nuanced horror.

A biracial crime scene cleaner, germaphobe haunted by a hungry ghost (who may or may not be her sister) amid the heightened anxiety of COVID and subsequent injustice and racism to Asians. This book is a lot, uber heavy...I think my run-on sentence portrays that well enough.

I am astounded. As gory (and it is seriously gory) as this book is, it was also akin to an emotional gut punch. I think most of us are aware of the disgusting racism and acts of violence against Asians, in particular at the onset of COVID and while this book is very much horror it is an ode to those forgotten, those denied justice, to BIPOC.

The author's note at the end was gutting and angering--anger not towards Baker but because I am reminded that the true monsters are humans.

I think this sneaks into the list of my favorite books I've read in 2024 <3

bat eater and other names for Cora Zeng

holy hell. yes yes and yes. YES PLEASE MORE OF THIS LET AUTHORS BE ANGRY AND LET THEM WRITE ABOUT IT!! I can tell this book was ripped out of the author. Not in a negative way, more like a ‘there’s no way for this story to stay inside’ way.

Cora Zeng watches her sister get pushed into a moving train and die. Instead of coping she gets a job as a crime scene cleaner and detaches as she scrubs down blood and brain fragments off of walls. When the cleaning crew finds a dead bat at a crime scene with yet another East Asian woman brutally killed, Cora starts to question her grasp on her mental state.

I don’t think you should know more than that going into this book AND CHECK TRIGGER WARNINGS! please take care of yourself as this book has a lot of heavy themes including: blood/gore, violent death(on page), pandemic mention, racism and general violence (specifically racially motivated/slurs), OCD- related behaviors (excessive cleaning, contamination)

truly my only criticism is the ending 15% seemed to drag a bit but it does wrap up in as satisfyingly as a book this heavy can.

Also as a younger sister myself who has some similarities to Cora I think the author handled her mental health crisis and how someone would even handle this shit show of a situation quite well.

I can’t wait for more people to read this any for more adult books from this author!!

thank you as always to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book for my honest review!

The vibes were not here. I mean objectively speaking, I don't think anyone is really ready or willing to read a book indirectly about covid or having covid be a main character which she sure as hell was in this one.
But, I digress, there was nothing wrong with this book. It was a very interesting and much needed experience about living in the states during covid as an Asian (woman in this story). People were mean, they were very racist and arguably still are.
The vibes were sad, they were low, they were depressing and also made me wanna throttle so many people all at once.
The story was good though and the author letter in the back, bravo.

Now the bits I didn't like so much. It's a slowburn for sure. It takes a good minute to get to the heart of the story. At times it was a bit too slow for me.
The covidness of it all. I get it, it's an integral part of the story. However, it brought back lots of bad memories and pain for me so for that I didn't enjoy this as much as I should have. Maybe another 5 years and I would have been able to face the spirits of 2020 with a smile. But not today.

Umm.....WOW? What did I just read (in the best way?)

As an FYI, there is a LOT of violence against women (particularly Chinese/Asian women), and a LOT of anti-Asian racism in this book. If those things are going to bother you, absolutely do not pick this up. It's going to make you uncomfortable (at least, it should), and it's definitely not all rainbows and butterflies.

If you liked The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim and Mary by Nat Cassidy, but want something a little more gross, this is for you. I can't stop thinking about this book and Cora's incredible story!!

Cora experiences more trauma in these 300 pages than almost any other character in a nonfantasy setting. As if the COVID 19 pandemic wasn't bad enough in New York during 2020, she also loses her sister and....everything else that happens in this book. But BOY does she have a character arc that I LOVED. She goes from a meek woman who lets life just happen to her, cleaning up crime scenes because she has an obsessive need of things being clean to one who is FED UP and is willing to take matters into her own hands and stand up for those who have even less of a voice than she does.

We all love a good feminine rage moment, and Cora has hers too. But beyond just being that, it also intersects with race as well. She's not just angry and fed up as a woman--she's angry and fed up as a Chinese/Asian (because most Americans just assume everyone is Chinese), woman. Baker did an INCREDIBLE job capturing what it was like to be around during that time, the amount of racism that was (and remains) rampant, and the way violence was all but sanctioned.

This felt SO real, and was so well written--the gore, the suspense, the fear, it's all there. This was a GREAT book to start 2025 reading, and I really hope Baker writes more horror like this in the future. This was excellent!

Kylie Lee Baker’s best work yet!

I fear if I do not get my hands on a physical arc I will die, and then come back as a hungry ghost.

I don’t even know what to write for this review, I’m still speechless days after reading. This was utter perfection. How you you describe perfection?

This was EVERYTHING

Here goes nothing…

If you read this book and feel nothing, I must assume you have no soul.

KLB writes absolutely stunning prose that is full of so much emotion and imagery. The juxtaposition of aforementioned beautiful prose combined with detailed gore elicits visceral reactions to both body and mind.

The paranormal aspects (ghosts) and murder mystery had my heart pounding and my mind questioning the sanity of the narrator - often I found myself wondering if the ghosts were real. The portrayal of the Asian experience was raw and heart-breaking. Grief, family, friendships, and self-discovery are just some of the themes KLB tackles with unmatched skill.

This book is dark, yet there is light at the end. Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is like nothing I have ever read - I feel privileged to have experienced it.

I fear so many of the 5⭐️ reviewers before me have done such an amazing job detailing the merits and nuances of this book, that anything I have to say with pale in comparison. Please go check out a few of my favorites if you need additional information to help convince you to pick up this book…
Mai's Review | Esta's Review | AM's Review

Thank you NetGalley and HTP for sending this book (eARC) for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed Bat Eater and Other Names by Cora Zengh. It’s the kind of book that sticks with you. The story dives into identity and the way we’re shaped by the names we’re given, the ones we choose, and the ones people stick on us.

This book won’t be for everyone, but I felt it was absolutely amazing. Brutally honest social commentary. Dehumanization running rampant. Heavy on the inner dialogue. Felt like a Covid fever dream, but all too real as to where our world is heading. What trauma and fear can drive a person to do.
The author’s descriptions of horror are strikingly honest and beautiful. This book solidified my heavy feelings of weltschmerz and misanthropy. It won’t be for everyone, but if you like The Grudge type horror with Jordan Peele social commentary, then I think you will enjoy this.
Don’t. Skip. The. Author’s. Note.

This was so scary!

I really enjoyed it. It’s a complex and multi-layered horror, with a few plotlines running through. You’ve got the main character and supporting cast, each with their own complicated relationships with their families and past difficulties. You’ve got the start of the COVID pandemic, with economic insecurity, job loss, and health anxiety. You’ve got Chinese folklore, centering around Ghost Month and the idea of hungry ghosts. You’ve got a series of murders of young chinese women, starting with the MC’s own sister in front of her. Finally, you have a pervasive and ever present thread of racism, with the anti-Asian sentiment that unfortunately was particularly out in the open during the context of the start of the pandemic. There are some times when this felt like a slow and eerie descent into madness, where I wondered about the reliability of the narrator, and other times when it felt like a thrill ride, with non-stop action.

A paranormal horror, mystery, social commentary all rolled into one, Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng explores the COVID-19 pandemic through the eyes of an Asian-American woman with crippling OCD.

Cora Zeng has always followed her big sister Delilah, whatever she said was what they did. Same university, same major, same everything. Cora doesn't know who she is and in March 2020, she's even more blindsided by the unknown when the world suddenly stops spinning in light of the pandemic. To make matters worse, Delilah is killed and Cora no longer knows how to function.

To make ends meet, and put her OCD to good use, Cora becomes a crime-scene cleaner in Chinatown, doing the job no one wants to do after gruesome deaths. When the gates of hell open for Hungry Ghost Month, Cora drops the ball and finds herself with a hungry ghost friend that wants her help to find her killer.

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng touches on the isolation of COVID, the outward racism of many toward Asian-Americans, and life after loss all with the fore plot of murder mystery.

While it won't be everyone's cup of tea, it was definitely a twisty ride with an interesting road and I look forward to more from Kylie Lee Baker.

Kylie Lee Baker’s Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is an intense, gut-punch of a read that I couldn’t stop thinking about long after finishing. The story pulls you in and sets the tone right from the start and it doesn’t let go. Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner in NYC's Chinatown, struggling with the brutal murder of her sister and the rise in Asian hate crimes - particularly the serial killer targeting Asian women. As an Asian woman myself, the story resonated with me on a personal level, making it impossible to put the book down.

I usually avoid pandemic-related books for my mental health, but I felt compelled to dive into this one—and I’m glad I did. It’s raw, relentless, and unapologetically real. Cora’s inability to acknowledge her grief, and her dependency on her late sister Delilah, made her journey all the more heartbreaking. Baker masterfully combines this emotional weight with terrifying elements of Asian horror folklore. Even though I typically steer clear of Asian horror because it unsettles me so much, I couldn’t stop reading—though I’ll admit, this one was hard to tackle at night!

The last few chapters really knocked me sideways. It wasn’t just the ending—it was the twists and gut-wrenching moments that made my heart ache and race at the same time. This book is wild in the best way, and the emotional punches just keep coming.

While I gave this book 4 stars instead of 5, it’s only because there were a few moments where the story felt a bit heavy-handed. However, that doesn’t take away from how much I connected with it. I’ll definitely be reading whatever Kylie Lee Baker writes next—her writing is that good.

If you’re into folklore, intense gore/horror, and deeply emotional storytelling, Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng is a must-read.Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the eARC. Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng releases on April 29, 2025

When I tell you, I did not expect the poetic metaphorical prose that was this book alongside some of the most original and grotesque body gore I've ever experienced.

Disclaimer: I did receive this e-book as a advanced reader copy through NetGalley. Thank you to Harlequin books and NetGalley for the free copy. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I had heard things about this author, but had never read anything by them. When I saw this book come up as a NetGalley arc I decided to give it a try because it sounded like a very interesting horror based novel. I have never been so happy to have requested an arc on the fly in my life.

This novel centers around Cora, an Asian woman who has been experiencing some massive discrimination and prejudice at the height of the Covid pandemic in New York City. Due to some off page incidences Cora has massive PTSD and a germaphobe problem. Which is only even more heightened due to the strict protocols surrounding Covid. We get so much Chinese mythology and a lot of the implications and traditions surrounding death of Asian people within this novel. It kept it very realistic and relatable and interesting. I was not expecting the lyrical prose that this would accompany with the very interesting and unique level of body gore that was found in the this novel. They were times during this novel where I was not 100% sure if the narrator was reliable or not or maybe possibly just hallucinating these things really happening to her? I found myself asking that question numerous times throughout this novel. The way I gasp screamed and spoke to this novel out loud as I was reading.

Needless to say, I absolutely finish this novel and downloaded more of this authors work. I cannot wait to dive back into this author's brain as it is a very unique and compelling experience.

Creepy! Can anything go right for Cora? This book touches on grief, the supernatural, gore, and the hardships of trying to navigate life through a pandemic.

Unlike other dark horror books I’ve read, “Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng” had an even more profoundly chilling component. Its almost finite list of nonfiction elements, many of which are still relatively fresh in my mind, made this story quite the conversation piece. Author Kylie Lee Baker creates a story that pulls the pandemic of 2020 as COVID spread quickly, the impacts it made culturally on the Chinese community, and makes it even more horrific as the main character attempts to find who unalived her sister. The story is quite detailed in many scenes, as some readers may be sensitive to that, as well as topics of race and the pandemic. Overall, I felt the author told a creative and thought-provoking story.

“The dead do not forget.”



WHAT AN ABSOLTELY BRILLIANT BOOK!!! I was hooked from the beginning and never wanted to put it down. Looking forward to more from Kylie Lee Baker!

Say hello to one of the best books I read this year! Words can’t fully capture just how much I loved this damn book and I’m pretty depressed it’s over. I went into Bat Eater knowing nothing because I decided I will blindly trust KLB after The Scarlet Alchemist. And in my favorite genre to boot? If you enjoy socially relevant and/or paranormal horror, add this to your TBR. Such a smart, bleak, important read. And these characters?! I was so invested. I will definitely revisit this via audio at some point.

I’d say if you liked any of the following, you would likely enjoy this: American Rapture by CJ Leede (found family, pandemic, religious themes), The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim (AAPI rep, serial killer), and Diavola by Jennifer Thorne (ghosts, difficult family relationships). This might make it seem like Bat Eater is doing too much but I swear it is doing JUST enough.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I typically avoid any type of media that has a focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. This time I’m glad I made an exception to the rule. This book tells a story bathed in grief not only for loved ones, but for all of those who have unfairly had their life taken away.

Our main character Cora is a bit mentally unbalanced. She’s obsessive about germs to the point of nearly being unable to leave her apartment. However, her job on a crime scene cleanup crew is perfect for her because she LOVES to clean.

This book has ghosts, suspense, lots of gore, and an overarching theme of how to rediscover yourself after the loss of someone close to you. At right around 300 pages it’s a fast paced read that you can get through pretty quickly. I will definitely be looking for other stories by this author!

#netgalley #readmorebooks #arcreview #arcreviewer #kylieleebakerbooks

This was SO GOOD. I have loved watching Baker grow as a writer from debut (which, I’ll be honest, I didn’t love) to now. The gore was fantastic and spaced apart enough or shown in stark pieces so that it never felt like it was only for shock value or that it overwrote the rest of the story. And the first death - I knew immediately that I was going to devour this book.

I will say that things slowed down quite a bit between the first death and when the plot really kicked up, and I think thats where we lost a star in the end. But Harvey and Yifei’s dynamic with Cora was fantastic.

And have I mentioned the gore? The gore was fantastic.

I also very much appreciate the unique perspective of the early days of the COVID pandemic - specifically through the lens of anti-Asian (and specifically anti-Chinese) hate. But also adding the particularly spooky Chinese ghost mythology, which was awesome.

Dnf 63%

This isn't a dnf because it was bad.
I just had to stop for my own mental health.

This book made me feel claustrophobic and trapped.
It talked about the themes of racism and hatred that Asian people faced during Covid shutdowns really well.

At first I wasn't sure this was going to be for me; BAT EATER starts out with the author just really in her feelings about the racism towards Asians during early stages Covid, and Cora is a very anxious, awkward individual who is often so paralyzed by her anxiety that it can be frustrating for the reader. But after ~35/40%, the plot picks up as Cora and her weird friends focus more on ghost hunting and murder solving. I love the creepy ghosts in this, and how the author brings in a lot of the Chinese culture around hungry ghosts. Yifei is a great supporting character, and even Cora manages to grow a bit.

I did for some reason think this was a women's wrongs story, but it's not really. Highly recommend looking up trigger warnings, as there is a lot of described (but not live) violence against Asian women, who are murdered in very gory ways. There are also a lot of bats maimed or killed.