Narrator, Patrick Bateman, a stockbroker from New York, getting into a taxi with his friend Timothy Price. They are on their way to a dinner party hosted by Bateman's fianc?e, Evelyn, at her apartment. At the party, there is controversy surrounding Evelyn's "artist friend" named Stash and his girlfriend Vanden. Stash and Vanden misbehave by playing with the sushi being served and are not dressed in fashionable attire like the other guests. Price mocks Stash for his poor appearance. After the other guests leave, Price continues to flirt with Evelyn, leading Bateman to suspect that they are having an affair. Once the intoxicated Price leaves, Bateman has passionless sex with Evelyn, finding it unenjoyable. He stops after only 15 minutes and goes back to his own apartment to masturbate, while thinking about a model he saw in a Calvin Klein ad.
Bateman provides an elaborate description of his apartment, including expensive brand name electronic equipment and furniture. He even mentions having crystal ashtrays from Fortunoff, despite not being a smoker. He then describes his morning routine in great detail, which involves using a multitude of hair, skin, and teeth care products. He also watches a television program about multiple personality disorders.
Bateman meets up with Price and two other business acquaintances, David Van Patten and Craig McDermott, at a bar called "Harry's." They engage in discussions about men's fashion and make anti-gay and sexist remarks while planning their dinner arrangements. McDermott shares a story about a woman who wore a glove during a sexual encounter to
avoid transmitting HIV. Price talks about his plan to break up with his current girlfriend, Meredith. Another businessman named Preston, whom they do not respect, approaches their table and tells a racist joke.
The group goes to a high-end restaurant called Pastels. McDermott knows the owner and manages to secure them excellent seats despite their last-minute arrival. They encounter another businessman named Scott Montgomery, who they envy because of his wealth and attractive girlfriend. Bateman proudly shows off his new business cards to impress his friends. However, he experiences a surge of jealousy when Price and Van Patten reveal that they have even more expensive and visually appealing cards. Bateman notices a beautiful woman at the restaurant whose left knee is slightly thicker and knobbier than her right. He observesthat this minor flaw causes his friends to lose interest in her.
After dinner, they head to a club called Tunnel.
At the club, the group engages in conversations about women and HIV. Van Patten asserts that the chance of HIV transmission between men is only 0.01%. Price and Bateman meet a drug dealer who supplies them with cocaine. They snort the cocaine in the club's toilet cubicles and become frustrated with its perceived weakness.
The following morning, Bateman arrives at his office and is greeted by his secretary, Jean, whom he believes has romantic feelings for him and predicts they might get married. He asks Jean to schedule several business lunches for him and also requests her help in finding tanning beds for purchase. Bateman criticizes Jean's attire and instructs her to wear dresses and high heels in the future.
Bateman describes the expensive private health club he attends, which costs $5,000 per year for membership. The club boasts numerous weights, aerobics machines, tennis courts, and two swimming pools. He mentions having a personal trainer but fired him after suspecting that the trainer made a pass at him. Instead, Bateman develops his own elaborate workout routine. After exercising, he visits a video store to return the movies She-Male Reformatory and Body Double. However, he decides to re-rent Body Double because he wants to rewatch a particularly violent scene.
While riding the elevator in his apartment building, Bateman encounters the actor Tom Cruise, who also lives there. Bateman compliments Cruise on a film but mistakenly refers to it as Bartender instead of Cocktail, as Cruise corrects him. Later, Bateman prepares for a date with a young woman named Patricia. He fails to secure a reservation at an exclusive restaurant of her choice, causing Patricia to sulk during their cab ride. They settle for a second-choice restaurant called Barcadia, which is still expensive. Afterward, they visit the Tunnel club, which is sparsely populated. Patricia and Bateman acquire cocaine, and Bateman fantasizes about committing acts of violence against a woman who approaches him.
Bateman visits a Chinese dry cleaner that returned some clothes to him with bloodstains still on them. He engages in a confrontation with an elderly Chinese woman in the dry cleaners, although he can't understand her. A woman from his building enters the dry cleaners and notices the suspicious stains on his sheets.Bateman tries to pass them off as cranberry juice stains. She invites him to lunch, but he declines her invitation with an excuse.
Bateman is at Harry's with two business associates. A man named Paul
Owen mistakes Bateman for Marcus Halberstam and asks about Marcus's girlfriend, Cecilia. They discuss women who have good personalities, with the other men arguing that looks are the only important factor.
Evelyn's friend Courtney invites Bateman to a new restaurant called "Deck Chairs" near Columbia University, accompanied by another couple. Bateman finds the couple dull, and Courtney seems to be in a comatose state due to taking lithium. Despite this, Courtney invites him back to her apartment for sex. However, their intercourse is interrupted when Bateman realizes he forgot his spermicidal lubricant. After finding some of Courtney's lubricant, their encounter is once again interrupted when Courtney realizes that Bateman is not using a safe contraceptive.
Bateman, hungover from a cocaine binge, becomes annoyed when his secretary Jean informs him of an important meeting at 11. He manages to attend the meeting, where he receives compliments from Luis Carruthers, Courtney's boyfriend, who constantly follows him. He encounters McDermott, who is upset with Bateman's criticism of the pizza at Pastels. McDermott changes Bateman's opinion about the pizza by showing him an article from the Financial Times where Donald Trump claims it is the best in New York.
Bateman goes to the video store with the intention of renting pornography but feels embarrassed when he sees someone he knows. He decides to rent a different film and chooses Body Double, which he has already seen 37 times. He has an awkward conversation with the "dumpy girl" at the checkout, discussing his favorite violent scene from the movie. He then goes to a shop called D'Agostino's to buy dinner items. Outside, he starts feeling the effects of the Valium he had taken
earlier and stands drooling in front of the store for several minutes.
Bateman goes to Xclusive to get a massage and facial from a woman named Helga. He tries to impress her by flexing his muscles and shares a violent fantasy he has involving transfusing the blood of a dog into a woman.
Bateman has a date with Evelyn in the evening. Prior to meeting, she informs him that her neighbor was found decapitatedthe night before. Bateman tells her that he has the woman's head in his fridge, but she remains oblivious and talks about a friend's extravagant wedding. She drops hints that Patrick should propose to her, despite his repeated discussions of violent murders he has committed or desires to commit.
Bateman attends a mediocre black-tie party where he encounters Courtney, who warns him that her boyfriend, Luis, suspects them of having an affair. Bateman leaves the party early, claiming he needs to return some videos. Instead, he roams the streets and comes across a sleeping homeless man outside an abandoned store. Bateman wakes him up and engages in a conversation, asking why he doesn't have a job. After feigning sympathy, Bateman cruelly stabs the man in the eyes and stomach, leaving him blind. He then goes to McDonald's to get a milkshake.
Bateman expresses his love for the band Genesis, particularly after the departure of Peter Gabriel and the increased influence of Phil Collins. He delves into detailed discussions about their albums and explores the themes of loneliness, paranoia, and alienation present in specific songs.
Bateman has lunch with Christopher Armstrong, a colleague from the same firm, at an unremarkable restaurant. Christopher enthusiastically recounts the details of his vacation in the Bahamas, extolling its greatness. Meanwhile, Bateman fantasizes about killing Armstrong, slashing his own wrists, and aiming the blood at Armstrong to silence him.
Bateman and Evelyn attend a U2 concert in New Jersey along with Luis, Courtney, and Paul Owen. Paul continuously mistakes Bateman for someone else. Initially unimpressed, Bateman has a transcendent experience when U2's lead singer, Bono, seemingly locks eyes with him. In that moment, everything else fades away, leaving only Bateman and Bono connected in a profound way. However, the feeling quickly dissipates.
Bateman wakes up from a drug-induced hangover, sweating and with a pounding headache, unsure of his whereabouts. He wanders the streets and purchases rats from a pet store, intending to torture and kill them. He also buys a substantial amount of crack cocaine from a dealer and consumes it all at once. Unaware of his actions, he enters a Jewish diner and repeatedly tries to order a cheeseburger and milkshake, oblivious to the fact that the restaurant is kosher. When the waitress explains that they cannot serve his request, Bateman becomes angry and confused,storming out of the diner.
Bateman is having a conversation with McDermott and Van Patten at the Yale Club, a gentleman's club. He tries to tell them about his
obsession with "Leatherface," a fictional serial killer from the film Texas Chainsaw Massacre. He contemplates murdering Luis Carruthers, who is seated at a nearby table, wondering how it would affect his relationship with Courtney. When Luis goes to the bathroom, Bateman follows him. In the restroom, Bateman intends to strangle Luis, but Luis mistakes his actions for a sexual advance and kisses his wrist. Shocked and paralyzed, Bateman is unable to proceed with the murder. He quickly leaves the bathroom and the club.
Bateman engages in making obscene phone calls to girls whose numbers he found in a stolen phone registry. After a trip to D'Agostino's for groceries, he walks the streets in search of victims. He comes across a gay man with a small dog and strikes up a conversation, complimenting the man's pet. The man asks Bateman if he is a model or actor before Bateman violently kills the dog by cutting its stomach open. He then proceeds to stab the man in the face, head, and throat, ensuring his death by shooting him.
Following a frustrating meal with Courtney, Bateman cruises the meatpacking district in a limousine, seeking out sex workers. He encounters a young blonde woman and entices her into his car with a $100 bill. They go to Bateman's apartment, where he instructs her to take a bath. He then arranges for another blonde sex worker through an agency. However, he is displeased when he realizes the woman's hair is not naturally blonde. Nevertheless, he engages in sexual activities with both women. Afterward, he brutally assaults them with a sharpened coat hanger, a rusty butter knife, and matches, leaving them crying and bleeding before they eventually leave.
Bateman discusses the list of people he needs to buy Christmas presents for and his priorities during the holiday season. This includes
his desire to be invited to the Trump Christmas party, securing a reservation at Dorsia with Courtney, and the gruesome act of sawing a woman's head off and mailing it to someone at a rival firm. He goes shopping for Christmas presents and browses for gifts in Bloomingdale's.
After killing a Chinese delivery boy by slitting his throat, Batemanattends Evelyn's Christmas party. The party has people of short stature impersonating elves. Evelyn playfully accuses Bateman of being a grinch as they discuss Christmas gifts. Paul Owen, who still mistakes Bateman for Marcus, approaches him to talk. Worried that Evelyn's presence will expose his true identity, Bateman convinces her, on false pretenses, to leave the party and go to a club. Bateman takes advantage of Owen's absence and requisitions his limousine. Inside the car, Evelyn discovers a diamond necklace, assuming it to be Bateman's gift to her, when in reality, it was Owen's gift for his girlfriend. At the club, a fight ensues when Bateman tries to take cocaine in a restroom and insults a woman.
Bateman is drinking with McDermott, Taylor(a colleague who has passed out), and three models at the nightclub Nell's in June. Despite the models' attractive appearances, the men find them unbearably boring due to their lack of conversation. McDermott and Bateman flip a coin to decide who will retrieve cocaine, and Bateman ends up going home with one of the models. Outside the club, Bateman bumps into a woman who dumped him in college. He has sex with the model and asks her afterward if she wants him to hurt her.
Bateman arranges to meet Paul Owen at a restaurant called Texarkana under the false name Marcus Halberstam. Owen is heavily intoxicated and fails to provide any valuable information regarding an important business account, the Fisher account. Taking advantage of Owen's
drunken state, Bateman invites him back to his apartment, where he brutally murders him with an ax. Bateman then breaks into Owen's apartment to change his answering machine message, giving the impression that Owen has gone to London. Finally, Bateman disposes of Owen's body by renting a storage unit and using lime.
Bateman is in the designer clothing store Paul Smith, conversing with a couple he knows when Luis approaches him. Luis tries to discuss the events that occurred in the Yale Club bathrooms, but Bateman refuses to engage. Luis confesses his love for Bateman, and as Luis follows him out of the shop, Bateman threatens him with a knife to make him go away.
On Patrick's brother Sean's birthday, he reluctantly agrees to meet him for a meal, despite despising him. Patrick tries to manipulate Sean into joining him by mentioning that something bad hashappened to their mother. Sean has connections and can secure a reservation at Dorsia, which Patrick has failed to do. Despite Sean's lack of a job or notable talents, he is strangely popular and well-connected.
Bateman has lunch with his ex-girlfriend from Harvard, Bethany. He is extremely nervous and unable to control the shaking of his legs. He presents her with a bizarre poem he wrote. Patrick becomes infuriated upon learning that Bethany is dating a chef who co-owns Dorsia. He convinces her to come back to his apartment, where he knocks her unconscious, nails her hands to a plank, and mutilates her.
Bateman goes to Nell's with Courtney and McDermott. They engage in an elaborate conversation about different brands of mineral water, and Bateman suspects that Courtney wants to sleep with McDermott. Later,
Bateman returns to his apartment to contemplate Bethany's body. He reveals that she had died earlier in the day when he sawed off her arm.
Bateman meticulously discusses the musical virtues of Whitney Houston. He evaluates the merits of each track on her self-titled 1985 album, stating that her music instills hope that it's not too late for people to better themselves and act with kindness. He specifically highlights the song "Didn't We Almost Have It All" as one of her most beautiful tracks, which reflects on reuniting with long-lost lovers.
Realizing that Luis will be attending a dinner with two other colleagues, Patrick decides to cancel, freeing up his evening. He invites Jean, his secretary, to join him since they are both in the office. Jean enthusiastically accepts and expresses a desire to go to Dorsia. Unable to secure a reservation, Bateman lies and claims to have booked one. This leads to an embarrassing situation at the restaurant when another couple shows up, causing Bateman to pretend they are a different couple. Jean is impressed by his charade and compliments his sense of humor. She invites him back to her apartment, but he declines out of concern for hurting her.
A private investigator named Donald Kimball visits Bateman's office and questions him about the disappearance of Paul Owen. Kimball is aware that Owen was supposed to meet Marcus Halberstam on the night he vanished. Marcus denies being there and provides an alibi. Despite Bateman's nervousness, Kimball lacks evidence connecting him to the incident. Kimball believesthat Owen may have actually gone to London, as the answering machine message suggested, and expects him to turn up eventually.
Bateman decides to go on a summer holiday with Evelyn to the Hamptons, a wealthy seaside area on Long Island near New York City. Initially, he tries to make their relationship work by engaging in romantic activities and cooking together. However, they quickly become estranged from each other once again and return to the city.
Bateman invites a model named Elizabeth and a sex worker named Christie back to his apartment. Christie, enticed by the promise of money, agrees to join them. Bateman drugs Elizabeth's wine with ecstasy and encourages her to engage in sexual activities with Christie. Once they do, Bateman proceeds to kill Elizabeth by cutting her neck with a knife. He also kills Christie by electrocuting her with a car battery.
Luis confronts Bateman in a shop while he is purchasing a belt. Luis declares his love for Bateman and suggests that they have mutual feelings. Bateman is horrified by Luis' confession, particularly when Luis proposes that they should leave New York and move to Arizona together. Bateman threatens to kill Luis, who breaks down in tears.
In a state of listlessness, Bateman visits the Central Park Zoo. He encounters a snowy owl and feels compelled to kill. He lures a five-year-old boy away from his mother with a cookie and discreetly stabs the boy in the neck. Bateman pretends to be a doctor when the boy is discovered, allowing him to observe the child's death. He reflects that killing a child is less satisfying than killing an adult because children lack a significant history or past.
Due to the smell emanating from his own apartment, which is caused by Christie's decomposing head, Bateman decides to use Paul Owen's
apartment for an evening with two sex workers. One of the women shares a strange story about a monkey she used to own before Bateman instructs both women to engage in sexual activities with each other. Afterward, he ties them up and brutally kills them, pouring acid on one and driving a power drill into the other's mouth.
In mid-October, Bateman describes in intricate detail the new sound equipment he has recently purchased. When he returns from a sound shop, he discovers a large rat inhis bathroom. He attempts to kill it with a mousetrap, but only manages to maim the animal. This leads him to contemplate ways in which he could use the rat to torture people.
Bateman finds himself caught up in a chaotic five-way phone conversation with McDermott, Hamlin, Evelyn, and Jeanette regarding dinner reservations. They spend an excessive amount of time deliberating which restaurant to go to and who to invite. Unfortunately, by the end of their discussion, most of the desired restaurants are already closed.
Patrick lures another woman back to his apartment, where he tortures and kills her. He ties her up and proceeds to force a live rat into her genitals before gruesomely sawing her in half.
Bateman meets Evelyn at yet another new restaurant. They both attempt to make each other jealous by commenting on the appearance of other diners. In a twisted act, Bateman tricks Evelyn into consuming a urinal cake disguised as an expensive dessert. He then confesses to her that his need for engaging in massive-scale homicidal behavior cannot be corrected, ultimately revealing his true nature. He informs Evelyn that
he is leaving her.
Exhausted and without access to drugs, Bateman attempts to consume parts of the woman he recently murdered. He tastes her intestines and stomach, even trying to make meatloaf out of her remains. However, his endeavor proves to be unsuccessful.
Bateman discloses that he has been concealing an Uzi sub-machine gun in his locker at Xclusive, the gym he frequents. He considers the weapon to be a symbol of order for himself.
After attending a charity dinner, Patrick shoots a busker on the street. A police car happens to be passing by and begins to chase him. In an attempt to evade capture, Bateman hijacks a taxi, kills the driver, and engages in a struggle with a police officer whom he eventually shoots. He manages to escape to his workplace building, where he hides under the desk in his office.
Bateman goes into great detail about the musical merits of "Huey Lewis and the News." He explains how their music has evolved from being focused on pursuing women to exploring relationships with them. Bateman concludes that the band is the best American band of the1980s.
Patrick is in bed with Courtney, who is taking prescription drugs. Despite her impending marriage to Luis, Courtney exhibits a lack of
enthusiasm. Bateman reveals that he likely won't see her again.
Bateman and McDermott visit a restaurant called Smith and Wollensky. While there, Bateman reflects internally on his cousin, who recently committed rape, as well as his childhood experiences riding horses with his brother.
Bateman is preparing to attend a new British musical on Broadway. In the morning, he watches the Patty Winters Show, a show he obsessively follows, which covers the topic of Ted Bundy, a notorious mass murderer, and the letters he wrote to his fianc?e while awaiting trial.
Patrick visits his mother at a private nursing home, where she is heavily sedated. Their conversation is minimal, with little to say to each other. However, his mother notices that he appears unhappy. Bateman looks at a picture of his father on her bedside table and makes a remark about his clothing.
Bateman returns to Owen's apartment, which he hasn't visited in six months. He discovers that the locks have been changed, and the apartment is being sold. The estate agent, considering Bateman "insane," warns him never to return.
Patrick describes how he engages in weightlifting as a means to relieve stress. He makes a claim that he keeps the genitals of three women in his locker.
Bateman has lunch with Jean, who confesses her love for him. Although he tries to explain that she doesn't truly know him, he is still touched by her affection and her ignorance of his darker nature. He contemplates being with her, considering her beauty as a significant factor.
The time is near Christmas, and Bateman is breaking up with another woman named Jeanette. Jeanette is going through an abortion. Bateman casually mentions that this is the fifth child he has had aborted, claiming that it is the third one he hasn't directly aborted himself.
As Valentine's Day approaches, Bateman sends Evelyn a box filled with flies and a note stating that he never wants to see her again. His colleague, Timothy Price, who had previously disappeared, reappears. Bateman notices a strange smudge on Price's forehead but questions whether it is actually there or just hisimagination.
Bateman encounters the homeless man whom he blinded earlier in the novel begging near Trump Tower. The man holds a sign claiming he lost his sight in Vietnam, but Bateman asserts that he knows the man is lying about his backstory.
While in a club with Jean, Bateman comes across his colleague, Carnes. In a disturbing revelation, Bateman confesses to Carnes that he murdered Paul Owen and tortured numerous women. However, Carnes refutes this claim, explaining that he had dinner with Owen in London
just ten days ago, making Bateman's confession impossible.
Bateman gets into a taxi with a driver who accuses him of killing someone named "Solly." The driver takes Bateman to an abandoned parking lot and proceeds to rob him.
Bateman is at the bar called "Harry's" with Timothy Price and McDermott. They are once again attempting to make a reservation at a restaurant, mirroring the opening chapters. The extent of Bateman's deteriorating mental state becomes apparent when he claims that cash machines are speaking to him, indicating a severe mental health crisis.