About Snowing in Bali
Snowing in Bali is the bestselling true crime book by investigative journalist Kathryn Bonella, revealing the hidden world of Bali’s international drug trade and the criminal networks operating behind the island’s postcard-perfect image. Based on years of research and interviews, the book uncovers the rise of cocaine trafficking, corruption and money laundering—and the foreign surfers, traffickers and organised crime figures drawn into one of Southeast Asia’s most dangerous drug markets.
Exploring the inner workings of international drug syndicates, Snowing in Bali tells the true stories behind some of the region’s most extraordinary criminal cases.
The book examines how ambition, addiction, greed and opportunity collided to transform the island into a major hub for international drug trafficking.
Since its release, Snowing in Bali has become one of Australia’s most successful true crime books, praised for its investigative depth, compelling storytelling and unprecedented access to the people at the centre of these events. It continues to attract readers worldwide who are fascinated by true crime, organised crime and the real stories behind Bali’s hidden underworld.
Explore Kathryn Bonella’s other books about Bali.
Listen to Kathryn discuss Snowing in Bali
The Story Behind Snowing in Bali
While researching her earlier books, Kathryn Bonella discovered an international drug trade hidden beneath Bali’s tourist image.
Through firsthand interviews with traffickers, prisoners, police and insiders, she uncovered the cocaine syndicates, corruption and vast profits driving Bali’s criminal underworld.
Why readers continue to discover Snowing in Bali
Snowing in Bali combines investigative reporting with extraordinary real-life, compelling stories. It offers an uncensored account of surfers turned international drug traffickers—and the dangerous criminal world they entered. The book has also been used by law lecturers at a Jakarta university in masters’ degree courses.
Snowing in Bali gives an uncensored and compelling look into the island’s drug world.
Snowing in Bali: Frequently Asked Questions
Is Snowing in Bali a true story?
Yes. Snowing in Bali is a true crime book based on Kathryn Bonella’s extensive interviews and research into Bali’s international drug trafficking world. It tells the real stories of surfers, drug traffickers, prisoners and others involved in the island’s hidden cocaine trade.
Is Snowing in Bali available as an audio book?
Yes. Snowing in Bali is available as an audio book, including through Audible and other audiobook retailers.
Who is Rafael in Snowing in Bali?
Rafael is one of the central figures in Snowing in Bali, appearing in Kathryn Bonella’s account of Bali’s international drug trafficking world. The book follows his role within that underworld in great detail.
Is Rafael his real name?
No. Rafael is a pseudonym used in Snowing in Bali to protect his identity. His name was the one detail changed for that reason; the events and account otherwise remain as reported in the book.
What is Snowing in Bali about?
Snowing in Bali is a true crime account of Bali’s hidden international drug trade, based on Kathryn Bonella’s extensive interviews and research. It follows the surfers, criminals, police and insiders caught up in the island’s cocaine underworld, revealing how the trade operated and the risks, violence and consequences that came with it.
More Bali True Crime Books
Readers interested in Kathryn Bonella’s Bali true crime books can also read Operation Playboy, Hotel Kerobokan and Schapelle Corby My Story.