4.5 stars. Cora Zeng is a crime-scene cleaner in Chinatown, NY during the height of the pandemic. She is not bothered by these messes, however, because nothing can be as horrific as watching your sister, Delilah, be pushed in front of a train. Cora is then haunted by this tragedy, by hungry ghosts and by a serial killer who is hunting Asian women. Since she witnessed her sister's murder, which the police still have no leads on, Cora cannot be sure what is real and what isn't. But someone is definitely targeting Asian women and something may also be targeting Cora herself.
This book gutted me. The amount of hate in the world back then and today is heartbreaking. I'm glad there are stories out there that shine a light on these atrocities so that we can, hopefully, do better.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this digital audio e-arc.*

Thank you NetGalley and MIRA Books for providing the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Honestly, this has gotta be in my top 3 horror books I have read in my lifetime. The prose is insanely good, the feeling of dread and mystery is handled well and I found myself open mouthed in shock at many points. It is so wild to read a book half hidden under your covers in fear but man does this book make you want a blankie.


Part ghost story, part serial killer mystery, also part psychological horror at times, this book is a masterpiece. I also want to praise the character work in this one, you feel very invested in the side character's lives, relationships with each other and their mysteries even if there is a LOT more going on in Cora's perspective. She does a wonderful job bringing these people to life in a way that feels so real.

Haunting, powerful, gory and enthralling. Pick this book up immediately, I promise it is worth your time.


TW: racism, hate crimes, body horror/gore, racial slurs, pandemic setting, vomit, animal cruelty/violence, mentions of child abuse

💥💥💥 Book Review 💥💥💥

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng
By. Kylie Lee Baker
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Stars

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng will absolutely leave you claustrophobic. In the thick of COVID, Cora, shows use the trauma and the ghosts during that nightmare. This book puts the reader back into the midst of the pandemic and gives us a look into the rascism of the period. This guy-wrenching novel was an amazingly dark emotional read.
I want to thank NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this one it had all the elements I enjoy in a book, gore, murder, mystery, ghosts, and lore. I did love learning about the Ghost Festival and the traditions surrounding. I also felt for the characters because to be treated that way and called names is horrible. Sadly, if fell a little flat for me. The book started off strong but a majority of the book is the same thing over and over, see a ghost, run, see a ghost, feed it, find a dead body, clean it up. I was hoping for a little more detective skills because I'm still unsure how they figured it out unless I missed something...I think if it would have multi-povs I think I would have enjoyed it more. Her co-workers were great and made the book more interesting.

Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner—but the bloody messes don't bother her, not when she's already witnessed the most horrific thing possible: her sister being pushed in front of a train. The killer was never caught, and Cora is still haunted by his last words: "bat eater."

These days nobody can reach Cora: not her aunt, who wants her to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival; not her weird colleagues; and especially not the slack-jawed shadow lurking around her door frame. After all, it can't be real—can it? After a series of unexplained killings in Chinatown, Cora believes someone might be targeting East Asian women, and something might be targeting Cora herself.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this ALC!

This was my first time reading a book that took place during the pandemic when fear and uncertainty of COVID was especially high. So it was a bit of an adjustment to bring myself back into that world and reality that so many of us went through.

This was a pandemic horror story that contained Chinese folklore, AAPI violence, grief and mental health, and racisim (so please check your trigger warnings before reading). I truly had no idea what to expect with this book and didn't expect it to take the turn that it did. Although, I struggled at times to really like Cora as our main chatacter, I liked how brutally honest and thought-provocking this story was. It really highlighted the cruelties that unfortunately are still very real in our society.

I highly recommend reading the authors note as well.

4.25⭐

Unfortunately I DNF'd at 50%.
The story is really slow to start. Based on the description I was expecting more horror genre elements to start sooner. Our main character Cora, is too passive. The story is happening to her, instead of her being a participant in it. I really liked the side characters, her coworkers, and I would have rather followed their stories as they seem more active in the decisions around them.

📖(what you’ll find):
𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙙 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙤𝙙 • 𝙥𝙡𝙤𝙩-𝙙𝙧𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙣 • 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙠𝙡𝙤𝙧𝙚 • 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 • 𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙨𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 • 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 • 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛 𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙪𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙚𝙨 • 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 • 𝙜𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙨 • 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙨, 𝙡𝙤𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙨 • 𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙨 • 𝙨𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚 •

🦇:
This was a refreshing change of direction from how my reading has been going lately. I had a few “meh“ 🫤 reads prior to picking this book up (it happens!).

Bat Eater (for short) was unique. It is bingeable and I listened to this one in the span of a day.

✅:
I found BE to be atmospheric, haunting, emotional, and creepy! Some of the elements that I love in a horror book. Check, check, and check!

🖤:
I never thought I’d get in my feels reading a horror, but here we are.

I am part of the group of women that was targeted with such violence and cruelty in this book. While fictional, the reality is that the prejudices and the discrimination that people in marginalized groups face is very real.

👻:
I just have to note that I don’t easily get creeped out. I’m a horror junkie through and through. There was a part in this audiobook where I jumped and felt super creeped out. Well done to the author! 🥲😂

🎧:
The voice actress did a stellar job in portraying the characters in this book. Nothing felt off or that it didn’t belong. Perfection!

🦇🤩 ABSOLUTELY LOVED THIS! 🤩🦇

Alright horror fans! Alright non-horror fans! I may have just read one of my top reads of the year! This book… was something else.

The social commentary? 🧑‍🍳💋
The gore? 🧑‍🍳💋
The mystery and thrill? 🧑‍🍳💋

I devoured this, and while I feel kind of weird using that term to describe this book, it’s the only thing that fits. I mostly listened to this one, going back to my physical copy every now and then. This is one I will definitely be re-reading but with mainly my eyeballs, because it was just SO good, and I want to experience it in all ways possible.

I’m honestly having a hard time writing this review beyond just screaming “I LOVED THIS BOOK- GO READ IT NOW!” So maybe you can take me at my word, and go pick this one up. (Pre-order now, or if you have Aardvark Book Club, add this to your box!)

𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝑰'𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐:
Basically everyone - as long as you can stomach a little gore.

𝑨 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏:
The narration was also 🧑‍🍳💋! She really brought this book to life, and I couldn’t have asked for a better audio production.

This is my official request for Kylie Lee Baker to write more YA horror, because Bat Eater was fantastic. Dark, unsettling, and utterly unflinching, this book weaves horror, grief, and cultural identity into a story that lingers long after the final page.

We follow Cora Zeng, a crime scene cleaner who’s no stranger to blood, trauma, or ghosts—literal and otherwise. Ever since witnessing her sister’s murder (and hearing the killer’s cryptic parting words: “bat eater”), Cora’s world has been shadowed by grief and haunted by things no one else sees. Now, with a string of unexplained killings in Chinatown, the sense of dread only sharpens and Cora begins to suspect that East Asian women are being targeted. Maybe by a killer. Maybe by something much, much worse.

Set during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Baker doesn’t shy away from depicting the racism, xenophobia, and violence that spiked in real life, and it makes the horror here feel deeply personal. This book is visceral, angry, and raw. The supernatural elements are chilling, but the real-world horrors hit just as hard. Cora’s narration, sharp, jaded, and achingly human, carries the story, and her crime scene cleanup crew of outcasts gives it heart and grit.

Also? Natalie Naudus nails the audiobook narration. She perfectly captures Cora’s vulnerability beneath the armor and gives every side character so much life. I’m her biggest fan and will happily listen to anything she narrates, but this performance in particular felt pitch-perfect for the story.

Kylie Lee Baker did not pull a single punch with this one, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Bat Eater is beautifully horrifying and I absolutely cannot wait to see what she writes next.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

I’m pleasantly surprised by this book. While I was interested in reading it, I didn’t really have an idea of how it was going to go. It turned out to be a great story that while fictional, it included so much of reality and racism—especially from the pandemic—that made it extremely gripping and evocative.

It was so interesting to me how the author wove in a horror ghost story into the pandemic. I normally don’t gravitate towards stories that are set during that time, but this one pulled me in, even more so with how the book starts.

The racism that the Asians endured, especially Asian women like Cora, was felt so deeply through the writing. I had to take moments to myself to really grasp what I was reading and the severity of it, which I’m not ignorant to not know that it is something that happens in real life. The extent of the hate crimes in this book were brutal yet tied in perfectly with the story, as well as drive home the point of something much more daunting and serious.

Audiobook impressions:
Listening to this on audio made my experience with this book even better. I will say, I don’t recommend listening to it while eating—I had to stop eating while I finished a gory scene that quite frankly left me saying, “What the f*ck?!” I’m not forgiving the author for what happened, because why? 😭

The narrator did a brilliant job in alternating between the characters, and she did so marvelously. I immediately knew which character she was voicing way before a name was mentioned. This is the kind of narration that I love!

After witnessing the horrific and racially motivated murder of her sister, Cora finds a job as a crime scene cleaner during the pandemic in New York City. During these gory jobs she starts to notice a pattern and has ideas about what might be happening with all of the racism that Asian people were facing at this time. Meanwhile she’s being chased by a hungry ghost, dealing with her aunt, and navigating her friendships.

This was so gripping from beginning to end, I could not stop listening. It had the perfect blend of gore, humor, character depth, and serious topics to make a well rounded and captivating story. I wasn’t sure what to expect since I knew this book was surrounding the pandemic but this far exceeded my expectations!

Natalie Naudus is one of my favorite narrators. She did an amazing job with this story as always!

Thank you so much to Harlequin Audio for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review. This publishes on April 29th!

This was my first book by this author. The plot seemed very original, which was a nice surprise. One thing I really liked was how it captured what life was like for some during the pandemic. It started off a bit slow for me, but once things picked up around halfway through, I was all in. The serial killer angle was dark and gory, with some added mystery to keep this interesting. If you love horror with a bit of a twisted edge, this book definitely delivers.

The characters were great, especially one who had me laughing, which is always a nice balance to the dark vibes. I also loved how Chinese traditions and folklore were threaded throughout the story. It added a cool cultural depth that made the whole thing feel fresh.

The audiobook was fantastic, too. The narrator really nailed each character’s voice and personality, which made it a fun listen that was very easy to follow.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for giving me the opportunity to review this audiobook.

The audiobook is narrated by Natalie Naudus, always a top tier narrator in my opinion. I would recommend the audiobook, it was great!

I really enjoyed the book. I was immediately into it when I started listening to it on Monday night. I meant to just start it a little but I ended up listening to 1/3 of the book and then finished it yesterday.

The book follows Cora Zeng, an Asian American woman in NYC during the pandemic (the blurbs on the back of the book mention the pandemic but it’s not in the plot synopsis). Her sister died in front of from being pushed in front of a train. She is a crime scene cleaner. I don’t really want to say anything else about the plot because I think going in with minimal information (for those of y’all okay with reading horror that way) is the best way to read it because I was into it! (expect murder, blood, gore, crime scene descriptions, and ghosts…)

I would recommend the book! It is horror but it’s not like really scary or tense or anything, more so for the gore and murder of it all. Also the pandemic content is not too intense, more the state of the world and how many Asian people were treated during it, not like illness content. But it is relevant to the plot/setting.

There are very detailed content warnings on StoryGraph if you are looking for them!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for this ALC!

I really enjoyed this book and the narrator. This was a unique and creepy story. I would definitely read more from this author in the future!

The narrator for this book was a miss for me. I got used to her voice after some time and found it difficult to comprehend at slightly higher speeds.

There wasn’t much distinction between characters and I had to rewind often to differentiate who said what. After a while I gave up and relied heavily on the text. Most unfortunate.

This does not however take away from the story, which I’ve given a 3. The star rating here is based solely on narration for this ALC.

This book followed an Asian girl during COVID who sees her sister die in the worst possible way and the author is very descriptive. Cora ends up being a crime scene cleaner and notices all these other Asians being murdered, but no one is doing anything about it. I can only imagine how true this was and I feel so bad for the Asian community. Being hassled just because of your ethnicity. We really do live in a cruel world.

The narrator did an excellent job between the main characters able to understand who is speaking at which time. She is able to show the emotion of what Cora or the other characters are dealing with at the time.

As previously stated, I would kill for Cora. But I would die for Yifei. I didn't expect such a distinct and lovable trio, but our narrator makes them so funny and eccentric, it's hard not to root for them.

This is an effortless listen. The most difficult part of it will be trying not to let the nausea overtake you from certain descriptions.

Give this a listen. Maybe in between meals.

'Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng' is an exploration of grief, identity and hate wrapped up in a gripping ghost story.

Cora Zeng is living through the end of the world as Covid crashes through New York City, bringing with it a rising tide of fear and anti-Asian hate crimes. Following the violent death of her sister, Cora finds herself working as a crime scene cleaner in Chinatown, where her and her coworkers are noticing an alarming amount of Asian women being brutally murdered in their homes. Possible serial killers aren't the only thing going bump in the dark, though - a ghost haunts Cora, lurking in the shadows and tapping on the walls. And it is *hungry*.

This is my first taste of pandemic horror, and it hit me unexpectedly hard as a New Yorker. Kylie Lee Baker captured the fear and uncertainty of the Covid outbreak in New York, but specifically focused on how hard that time was for Asian-Americans who had become a focal point for that fear and uncertainty. Anti-Asian hate crimes jumped up during the pandemic as people turned their fear into hate over the "China virus", which Baker allows readers to experience through the narrative. The story is gory, violent, and tragic, but also humorous and heartfelt. The audiobook narrator, Natalie Naudus, did an excellent job conveying emotion and urgency, adding additional depth to the story that left me in tears one moment and laughing out loud the next.

One last thing - one of the last lines of the author's note at the end of the book really stuck with me, and I wanted to share it, especially in times like these:

"Do not let your empathy stop at the borders of your own community."

#NetGalley

This is a book that may not be for everyone, but it is a book that everyone should read. I do not typically read horror, because I am usually sensitive to graphic violence, but I’m so glad that I decided to take a chance on this story.

But the scariest thing in this book are not the ghosts, it is the people. Bat Eater perfectly encapsulates the feeling of a sense of community being stripped away by isolation, suspicion, and misplaced blame. The main character, Cora Zeng, a Chinese-American living in New York City, gives a memorable perspective of what it’s like to be on the receiving end of racial scapegoating, and what hate can look like when emboldened. The murder-mystery aspect is not only for the thrills, but it’s a metaphor of systematic racism that packs a punch, and isn’t afraid to do so.

Speaking of powerful metaphors- let's talk ghosts. I loved the nod to Chinese folklore with these hungry ghosts that genuinely creeped me out. Their vivid descriptions are so viscerally effective, I found myself hesitantly peeking into dark corners while listening. Tying hungry ghosts to Cora’s grief and the questioning of her own cultural identity is effective and chilling.

I’m so grateful for the opportunity to listen to this story performed by Natalie Naudus. Naudus does a fantastic job giving voice to Cora’s inner turmoil and makes character differentiation easy with successful changes in inflection and tone. This is an instance where a great narrator heightens the tension and suspense in the best ways, making Bat Eater a more impactful read.

Unsettling in the best ways, this story doesn’t rely solely on jump scares to deliver a powerful message. I will be thinking about this one for a long time.

I felt the pace was fast initially and slowed down until about 60/70%. The action really picked up and I could feel my heart racing waiting to find out what happens next. I quite literally screamed in my car...

Kylie did a wonderful job with crafting a horror story with Chinese folklore on ghosts around covid/pandemic, aapi violence, grief, mental health difficulties, racism, and corporation corrution. I felt angry, frustrated, enraged, and this feeling of sadness in the end.

I need to say... I don't typically read horror and I have come to realize I need emotional connections to the characters to feel the story as a blue/yellow reader. I wasn't feeling connected to Cora and the side characters.

Overall I enjoyed the book and would recommend to other horror readers.

Thank you to Harlequin Audio for the ALC!