Plenty going on in this one, with ups and downs along the way.

Nate and Layla, Jude and Sophie have been friends for a long time doing almost everything together. Then Nate and Layla up sticks and make a new life for themselves in Bali. An idyllic life, with a better work/life balance, so why wouldn't they? They've always been inviting Jude and Sophie to come for a holiday and, suddenly, that's exactly what happens. Now there's nothing missing - except, perhaps, honesty . . .

This is a precisely crafted novel - and very cleverly written. On the surface, life couldn't be better but you only have to scrape the surface to realise that things are not what they seem. As things began to unfold, I was glued to the pages and very reluctant to lay this one aside. With several shocks and surprises along the way, it was a cracking read which I'm very happy to recommend. I started out liking all the characters ... I can't say I felt the same by the end. 4.5*.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley.

I found this book really disappointing, it wasn't what I expected at all. I think part of the problem was that I couldn't connect with any of the characters, I found them all quite irritating. From the offset each one had such an entitled attitude that I honestly didn't care what happened to them and as the book progressed they did nothing to change my opinion. The secrets they were keeping were pretty minor, the type of thing many a person would shake off and there was no great twist at the end. Not a book I would recommend
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book

3.25*

They Had It Coming starts with all the ingredients of a Nikki Smith destination thriller: a glamorous cast, an exotic villa, a tightly knit circle of suspects and enough buried secrets to fuel a dozen red herrings. Smith’s talent for building tension is undeniable, but this time around a few missteps kept me from fully surrendering to the suspense.

What Worked

Intrigue & Secrets: The wedding fiasco had me asking throughout, “What really went down that night?”

Atmosphere: Smith nails that “trouble in paradise” vibe. The sun-drenched villa feels suffocating, and every offhand glance or hushed conversation hints at hidden agendas.

What Didn’t

Drug-Dealing Subplot: Unfortunately, the Bali-set drug storyline feels both undercooked and clichéd. Rather than adding depth, it distracted from the central mystery—and never really fit the otherwise polished tone.

Pacing & Plot Thickness: The narrative occasionally circles back on itself instead of pushing forward especially in the middle third.

Final Reveal: The big twist landed a little flat for me. Once the culprit is unmasked, the “why” doesn’t quite live up to the elaborate setup.

Having adored The Guests, my expectations were sky-high—and while They Had It Coming is still an enjoyable read, it falls short of Smith’s previous knockout. That said, if you love sun-soaked thrillers with simmering tension, it’s a breezy, entertaining choice and will make for a fun summer-holiday page-turner.

Two couples escape to Bali for a fresh start, but beneath the sunlit paradise lie tangled secrets, betrayals, and fractured friendships. Nikki Smith masterfully explores themes of trust, loyalty, and revenge through vivid, relatable characters caught in emotional turmoil.

The story’s dual timelines and multiple POVs reveal the slow unraveling of relationships, fueled by deception and toxic friendships. While some plot twists feel familiar to seasoned thriller fans, the rich character development and atmospheric setting keep the tension alive.

Perfect for readers who love psychological thrillers with emotional depth and complex friendships.

This was a really gripping read that kept me turning the pages. I liked how the story slowly unraveled, revealing layers of each character and their motivations. The multiple perspectives were done well, adding depth and keeping the tension going. It had a dark, twisty vibe that I really enjoyed, and the themes were thought provoking without being heavy handed. A few parts were a bit predictable, and I wanted slightly more from the ending, but overall, it was a solid, wellwritten thriller that I’d definitely recommend.

Grab your popcorn and prepare to roll your eyes as Nikki Smith takes you on a sun filled trip to Bali in this, her latest offering. And it's chock full of secrets, lies, and more dysfunctional behaviour than you could ever believe from the four main characters. So many that I was tempted to offer a bingo card in my review for you to tick them all off as you go but, you know, spoilers. Suffice to say that, even though my eyes rolled quite frequently, the whole package was way more than the sum of its parts and so I can way easily forgive the author as it was all done in the spirit of the genre...
So... we first meet Sophie as she discovers there's been a break in at her London home. Husband Jude is sympathetic but can see it is affecting her a lot. But he has his own problems at work to contend with. The we meet Nate and Layla who have been friends with Sophie and Jude forever, although currently, due to an "incident" are a bit estranged. Which isn't too much hassle as they upped sticks and are now living in Bali, renting an AirB&B whilst they build their own villa, courtesy of Layla's inheritance...
There's so much more I can say about the characters and the situations they find themselves in when Sophie and Jude fly out to stay with them for a couple of months but you really need to discover it, warts and all, for yourself, for maximum car crash impact. Suffice to say that they are all pretty nasty and, if real, better avoided.
The book delivers shock after shock, with secrets exposed all the way through, some better than others I hasten to add. But all move the story along nicely. We also have a separate thread, set in the past, and quite where this all connects, again I'm leaving for you to find out, but it does eventually explain a few things towards the end so just stay with it... An ending which, if I'm honest, I didn't see the half of which coming but which satisfied as well as shocked.
All in all, another winner to add to an already well established back catalogue. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I was gripped by this sun soaked mystery set in Bali, with underlying serious themes. Nikki Smith captures all the sights and sounds of the island, as well as the attitude of westerners towards locals - I really felt I was back in the tropics. Two couples share a toxic friendship and past and present grievances are slowly revealed. All the characters were annoying and unlikeable but the slow build suspense had me on the edge of my seat. As well as being a compelling read, there’s a realistic depiction of the issues Bali is facing with foreign investment and over development..It’s really sad how much Bali has changed in the last 20 years, fuelled by digital nomads, like some of these characters - living their best life on Instagram but destroying the lives of a lot of the locals.

I want to front this by saying I'm not normally a thriller girl AT ALL (as in, this was literally my first thriller ever), so I'm so grateful for being given the chance to read this one despite my profile not fitting the typical vibe.

This last 12 months I've really branched out with my reading habits, and I read some historical fiction and one sort-of thriller that were such a refreshing, page-turning change from my usual romance vibe. I've been craving more of that since, and honestly, the fact that THIS was the thriller that caught my eye as being my first step into the genre, should be deemed the highest praise. I've gone a LONG time without being swayed!

Bearing in mind that I'm judging this based on this book alone (i.e. I'm not an expert on what makes a great thriller), I did genuinely enjoy this book. It took me a little while to understand whether I did or not, because I have to admit it was a stressful read. I think part of that was also because this was my first experience with the genre, I wasn't sure of the typical format or how 'far' things might go, and what sort of darkness I needed to be prepared for. Overall, I'd say this was the perfect amount of twisted darkness to keep me reading, without scarring me for dear life.

I adored the Bali setting which added to the whole atmosphere, the pacing was great (even the first half where it was mostly setting up the scenario/characters was well-written and pacey). I thought the balance between 'normality' (used loosely) and drama was perfect, the slowly-building tension throughout was incredible, and the ending didn't disappoint. I devoured the second half of this in one sitting, and even I was like WOAH how did I just read, like, 150 pages.

I might be adding more thrillers to my list...

Kinda made me want to up sticks and move to Bali,the descriptions of the island a d what it offers were tantalising and you could see,hear and taste the island,almost
A really good story of friends who decide to completely change their lives and the left behind friends and what happens when a reunion is more about revenge than reunion…..and the reasons for this
Enjoyable read ,great writing

The story is definitely intriguing. Set in Bali the story focuses on 2 couples. At times I found it hard to keep them straight in my head as there was a lot of hints at who did what and no real distinguishing characteristics between them.

The story is written from multiple POVs and is interspersed with a story from 2007 which becomes clear at the end.

There was a lot of build up and then a fairly disappointing round up of information at the end…I felt a lot went on, but the resolution was not great, an entrenched feud was dropped for example.

It was an ok read, a good setting, but I felt the ending needed more time to it and the middle less. I also wanted to know more about Nate and his motivation.

This took me so long to read for multiple reasons but the main one being I never really got into it.

The cast of characters are confusing and unlikeable and not in a good way. I was never fully engaged by any of the pov's and I found the multiple timelines quite confusing and unnecessary (the opening flashback was so strong and had me hooked but tbh r pacing of the rest of this book did not follow that at all)! I feel most of this book was pushing certain characters to be seen as negative and the villains when really that was not the case. The end reveals felt less like reveals but more misleading to the audience. To me, there were way too many timelines for everything to be wrapped up nicely.

I do feel it ended somewhat satisfyingly but, for me, there were certain people that were overlooked. For a book that seemed to be preaching about how wrong it was for foreigners to be moving to Bali, it seemed to care very little about the Balinese community.

I'm just unsure. I do think this book was surprising, but maybe not in all the right ways.

Thank you to Penguin and NetGalley for this arc !!

*All opinions are my own !!*

This was a perfect book to read in the sun, the setting of Bali was well researched and I could imagine myself in all of the locations.

Sophie and Jude head off on a 3 month trip to Bali to visit their friends Nate and Layla to get away from their lives in London. There is tension from the outset due to something happening on Sophie and Jude’s wedding day and the tension builds as it’s clear each of the four is hiding something and the reader doesn’t know who, if any of them to trust.

There are a few twists weaved throughout the plot as well as a separate timeline set in 2007 that is interspersed through the main story.

Really enjoyed this book, would make a perfect beach read.

Jude and Sophie and Nate and Layla have been good friends for years back in London. Nate and Layla have moved to a tropical paradise of Bali, where they are busy setting up their future life! Jude and Sophie arrange to visit them at their villa and to experience a holiday of a lifetime. The story is told with multiple points of views and over different time lines. We soon learn there are secrets and lies brewing in their lives. I found it to be intriguing, mysterious, taut and tense with plenty of nail biting moments as the story reaches a dramatic conclusion.

Thanks for early copy review.

Read few nicking books.

And i was excited to start this.

She didnt disappoint cant wait for next one.

Thank you to Netgalley and the UK publishers for providing me with an advanced copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

The setting of this gets 5 stars. The plot gets 2 unfortunately and I can't personally recommend it.

The book kept hinting at traumas which happened in the past but absolutely nothing was going on in the present for such a long time. There was a big info dump at the end with twist after twist but I didn't feel it explained the dynamic between the characters earlier.

Fantastic summer thriller read

This is the first book I have read by Nikki and it won’t be the last!

I loved the ease and pace of Nikki’s writing. The short chapters and multi POV’s in this book are something I look for in my thrillers - you get such a whole rounded picture of the story when you hear from multiple people.

The story had you constantly wondering why this, why that and oooh what does that meeeaaaannnn?! But it all gets wrapped up nicely at the end and by golly those twists and reveals 😱😱 definitely did not disappoint

The Bali setting gave it a fab summery feel and I thought the details and settings really meant you could picture the scenes.

Don’t hesitate to pick this one up for a thrilling summer read.

Thank you Netgalley, Nikki and the publisher for an advance copy in return for my honest review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I really enjoyed this psychological thriller, 4 friends have secrets, but also past lives and when in Bali it all starts to unravel. Nate and Jude have been university friends, when Jude’s flat is burgled him and Sophie his wife decides to visit Nate and Layla in Bali. Layla is dreading it as she wrecked their wedding day. Will the truths be uncovered? Thrilling read set in beautiful Bali, great scenery descriptions and really made the story come alive. The plot was twisty and the way the author wrote the book was great, each chapter is another of the friends telling their side of the story. A fab 5 star read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a copy.

Another Nikki Smith destination thriller that didn't disappoint!!

I really enjoyed this one - it's my favourite yet. I loved the gorgeous Bali setting and how despite seeming to be paradise, there were lots of hidden secrets.

I find books about insufferable rich people fascinating so this was right up my street. I also loved the commentary on the ethics of tourism and digital nomads, and their impact on local communities.

There were so many twists and turns that I didn't see coming. The fact it's a slow burn thriller really built up to the twists and it all made sense by the end of the book.

I was gripped the whole way through this and desperate to find out what happened next!

A fast paced psychological thriller set in Bali. The sinister elements that lay beneath the beautiful setting were compelling. Though I did not like the characters, they acted in a believable manner and the denouement was very satisfying.

Well! What a title and what a book! I just loved this! I raced through it in record time as I was just so eager to find out what was going on and ‘Who had it Coming?’ It was a tense, exciting , chilling read with so many twists and turns throughout ,I was totally confused It was a superb plot and I loved reading about what was going on between the two couples… so modern and so real! The backdrop of Bali just added to the suspense as well as being very intriguing. You could just picture it all so easily!
This is definitely a must read just like all Nikki Smith’s previous novels. You are in for such a treat!!