Bookseller Reviews
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A harrowing sucker punch
Oh my days, what have I just read!!!
This was an EXCELLENT literary horror that feels like it swoops in from nowhere and then knocks you for six.
Th... READ MORE
Fantastically well-written literary horror!
‘Bat Eater’ is a stunning blend of literary fiction and body horror, following the story of Cora Zeng in the aftermath of her sister’s murder, a traumatic ... READ MORE
A brilliant horror read!
Not for the squeamish! This is a visceral horror story, guts and brains all over the place and it's bloody fantastic. It begins in the way of a crime/thril... READ MORE
Love you, Bat Eater!
As a Chinese American, Cora Zeng is no stranger to hate and discrimination, but during the pandemic, New York (and the rest of the world) is more hostile t... READ MORE
Hungry ghosts and murder
If you are looking for a gory story that feels all too real, this is the book for you. Full of monsters (and not just the hungry ghosts) this book is terri... READ MORE
Deliciously Gory and Hauntingly Unique
This book grabs you right at the start and leaves you battered and bruised throughout!
We meet Cora, a young germaphobic Asian woman living in New York... READ MORE
Incredibly Raw and Critical Story of Racism Faced During COVID
Wow, this novel absolutely blew me away.
Bat Eater utilises supernatural and body horror to explore the filthy underlying issues of COVID faced by Asian... READ MORE
This is a gory and harrowing read that kept me hooked from page one!!
My good god this was so good!
Bat Eater follows Cora Zeng who has literally just seen her sister get brutally murdered in front of her. Cora begins worki... READ MORE
Brutal.
This is the story of Cora Zeng, a crime scene cleaner in NYC. Set during the COVID pandemic fear evolves into intolerance and sinophobia as a serial kille... READ MORE
A great horror read
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review!
This was brutal and angry and angsty, and a great horror read. The au... READ MORE
The best modern horror I've ever read
Thank you to the publisher for sending me a copy of Bat Eater in exchange for an honest review.
I've been scrolling through my Goodreads trying to find ... READ MORE
Excellently written. Wonderfully scary.
This is easily one of the best books I have read all year, and possibly one of the best horror novels I’ve read in years.
Bat Eater is surprising, it is ... READ MORE
A perfect literary horror!
My first 2025 release and what a way to start! This book was a perfect blend of social commentary, horror, complicated family dynamics and personal identit... READ MORE
Incredibly raw and real
I think a lot of people might pick this up because they think it's a book about a serial killer targeting east asian women in NYC during the pandemic, whic... READ MORE
Highly compelling!
Reliving the paranoia/insecurities of covid through the eyes of others.
Racial injustices, gory crime scenes/cleanups and hungry ghosts giving power to t... READ MORE
An unsettling read you won't be able to put down
I don't tend to reach for thriller or crime books, however the plot involving the belief of hungry ghosts that are quite prevalent in several Asian countri... READ MORE
Incredible
There's already a lot of reviews so I'll keep mine short, but this really was an incredible novel. Beautifully written, exploring grief and isolation throu... READ MORE
Not For the Faint Hearted
I always enjoy experiencing multicultural and diverse variations of hauntings and ghosts. And this was no exception. With part of the story being the horro... READ MORE
Truly horrible
Grisly in the extreme. A beautiful, harrowing paranormal horror about what it meant to be Chinese in the wake of the Covid outbreak. Highly recommend.
gorgeous horror
My jaw? On the floor. My flabbers? Gasted. And the shivers? All the way up and down my spine.
This novel is SUBLIME.
Bat Eater is a furious, stunnin... READ MORE
Tense, thrilling, gory, oppressive and uncomfortable... BRILLIANT.
I absolutely adored this book.
It's not just a perfect "Spooky Season" read, it's a brilliant read for any time of year.
We follow Cora, a 24 year ol... READ MORE
Synopsis
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.
But 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 doorframe. After all, it can't be real - can it?
After a series of unexplained killings in Chinatown, Cora believes that someone might be targeting East Asian women, and something might be targeting Cora herself.
Soon, she will learn . . . you can't just ignore hungry ghosts.
Publisher information
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
- ISBN: 9781399729833
- Number of pages: 336
- Dimensions: 196 x 128 x 28 mm
- Weight: 240g
- Languages: English
Customer Reviews
View allA story of ghosts/monsters but maybe not the one you were excepting...
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... READ MORE
Gripping horror
5 star ⭐️
Harrowing, gripping and deeply creepy throughout.
From the first chapter I was hooked, letting out gasps in shock and desperate to continu... READ MORE
So much more than a horror story
While this book has some truly stomach-churning imagery, that’s not what it pins its flag to overall and I think that really worked for me. I was truly sur... READ MORE
An unforgettable read
"Because a bat eater is the kind of person that white men want to hurt, the kind of person who tangles their fear and hate together and elicits their rage,... READ MORE
SO GOOD
Cora Zeng saw her sister get pushed in front of a train, right in front of her. The killer was never caught, and Cora is still haunted by his last words: B... READ MORE
social horror-thriller
My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Net Galley for a free eARC of "Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng" by Kylie Lee Baker.
An excellently crafted Hor... READ MORE
Instantly Gripping
Thinking of the Covid pandemic with all the testing and masks and everyone panic buying toilet rolls, it feels like another lifetime ago. I sometimes wonde... READ MORE
Inventive and unsettling
Bat Eater was an inventive and discombobulating story that burrows under your skin.
This is a book that you will not forget for a long time. It is arre... READ MORE
Horrifying and brilliant
This book was terrifying. I couldn’t sleep last night after reading it and I didn’t want to turn my back on the shadows. Highly recommend.
I read a lot... READ MORE
Utterly compelling
About 6 months ago, give or take, a friend and I had a conversation about horror fiction. I had just read Anna Bogutskya's Feeding the Monster, and was onc... READ MORE
Beautifully written - I loved this so much!
The book starts with a bang and settles into a very lit-fic tone. The characters are well developed and we get a real feel for who Cora is, and for her lif... READ MORE
A must read
I think this could be the book that gets a cult like following this year. It’s 3 books in one, part reflection on 2020 from a Chinese-American woman’s pers... READ MORE
I love the Author’s books
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 kylie lee Baker books... READ MORE
Gripping horror
5 star ⭐️
Harrowing, gripping and deeply creepy throughout.
From the first chapter I was hooked, letting out gasps in shock and desperate to continu... READ MORE
Kept me invested
Honestly, the best word I had when I had finished it was depressing but it was interesting and kept me coming back. The inclusion of COVID was quite a stra... READ MORE
Very good but dark!
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 ... READ MORE
Beautifully written and gripping
I loved this so much!
The book starts with a bang and settles into a very lit-fic tone. The characters are well developed and we get a real feel for who... READ MORE