The strongest short story out of the Shivers collection (that I've read). Unsettling in a "rich people do the dumbest shit" sort of way. The referenceThe strongest short story out of the Shivers collection (that I've read). Unsettling in a "rich people do the dumbest shit" sort of way. The references to "Espresso" and "Watermelon Sugar" took me out of the story for a second though, not going to lie....more
Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this novel! Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng releases on April 29, 2025.
Bat EThank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this novel! Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng releases on April 29, 2025.
Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng opens with Cora Zeng and her sister Delilah waiting for the train home. After a tense conversation, Cora watches in horror as someone reaches out and pushes her sister into the path of the oncoming train. Five months after the murder of her sister, Cora finds herself in the path of a serial killer targeting Asian women and haunted by hungry ghosts.
What a novel. Bat Eater takes place in those early days of Covid-19, when everything felt claustrophobic and horrifying, the uncertainty of the disease made worse by the rampant racism towards Asians and Asian Americans. Following Cora took me right back to 2020, to the gallons of hand sanitizer and Lysol wipes and fear. Baker did such a fantastic job writing a pandemic novel, but not letting the pandemic overshadow the plot or characters. Because this is a horror novel -- there is so much blood and body horror and tension. Baker does a fantastic job portraying some of the scariest ghosts I've read -- I had literal chills at some of the scenes.
At the heart of this, though, is two sisters and the complicated relationship between them. Cora is a difficult character, at times, as she is so in her grief and her inability to see anything outside of her sister. Because she has intertwined herself so tightly with Delilah, she doesn't see a place for herself outside of Delilah -- everything she is is Delilah. Baker described this codependent relationship well.
I was also so impressed with her depiction of mental illness and, in particular, the OCD-esque tendencies that Cora has. It felt extremely relatable, especially when it came to repetitious actions and intrusive thoughts.
I did think that the middle bit had some disjointed pacing issues, and it was a little repetitive. That said, I really enjoyed my time with this book. I highly recommend it -- and don't skip out on the Afterword. It's brilliant. ...more
Didn't love this as much as the first book, even though I loved the premise. There was really no growth in character for Mary Elizabeth between this aDidn't love this as much as the first book, even though I loved the premise. There was really no growth in character for Mary Elizabeth between this and the first novel, and I found a lot of her inner dialogue to be quite repetitive. ...more
The biggest issue for me here was the pacing. There's a large chunk of this novel, like the first half or so, when nothing is really happening. Then the tension and action really pick up, and it ends quite quickly.
Still, had a good time reading and already have the next book ready to download. ...more
Outdated, but nostalgic. This felt like watching Girls. I probably would have liked it more in my early 20s. I'm glad the afterword touched on some ofOutdated, but nostalgic. This felt like watching Girls. I probably would have liked it more in my early 20s. I'm glad the afterword touched on some of the outdated issues presented in the text, but it also felt a little self aggrandizing.
I never understood why our MC and Finn were so obsessed with one another and stuck in this toxic cyclical spiral. ...more
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