When Isla finds a picture of her beloved grandfather in a Nazi uniform….she instantly begins to question the man that she grew up knowing. Was he really who he said he was, what is he hiding? She has so many questions but she can’t ask them because her grandfather has dementia and it’s accelerating rapidly. So she goes on a journey to his hometown in Poland to ask her questions to her great uncle. She’s given boxes of diaries and letters her grandfather wrote during the war and they paint a heartbreaking picture of the man she loves so much.

This story is very good. The characters are very dynamic and they instantly draw you in. It feels like you’re going on the quest with Isla and you want answers as much as he does. I highly recommend this capturing and riveting WWII story.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture and Carly Schabowski for early access to this story. It’s a page turner waiting to find out what happens next!

3.5 stars

Can you ever forgive or the fact that what you thought you knew was just not so? Coming across a photo of two men in Nazi uniforms, Isla, preparing for her grandfather's nine-fifth birthday, is shocked, for one of the men in the photo is her beloved grandfather. How could this possibly be?

She is prohibited from asking her grandfather because of his advanced case of dementia. She grabs onto two things, one is a desire to know the truth, the other a rainbow colored scarf that belonged to her grandfather. As Isla delves into the past, she comes across a tale of lost love, of survival in order to protect one's family, and the ability of some to face danger when others might fear to go. She also learns of a seemingly magical connection between her grandfather an a gypsy, the original owner of the rainbow scarf.

This story shows how deep the wounds of war go, how far a lost love will be held onto, and the courage of those who put their lives on the line for freedom. As Isla travels back to her grandfather's native Poland, she learn much about her grandfather's life and that of his family. It is an interesting tale of hope in the face of the cruelty of war.

Thank you to Carly Schabowski, Bookouture, and NetGalley for a copy of this book due out July 28, 2021.

💫 The Rainbow 💫
By Carly Schabowski

Second book by this author; the first The Watchmaker of Dachau, was one I loved last year so when I saw this pop up on NG, I instantly requested it.

What would you do if you stumbled upon photos of your beloved grandfather in a nazi uniform?! How would you begin to untangle the past in a way that allows you to understand the position he was in and at the same time hope that it wasn’t true.

I got scooped up into this novel from page 1. I have a soft spot for the older generation POV and their flashbacks of memories. I think this may be my favourite of the authors.

If you enjoyed Tattooist of Auschwitz, then you will love this.

Thank you bookouvture for always supporting me by gifting me the arc. I am a big fan of this pub house and it’s authors.

This book comes out July 28,2021
It is a goodie that anyone who loves HF.

Carly Schabowski has quickly become one of my go to authors.
The Rainbow is another brilliantly written, sensitively told dual timeline story about Isla and her grandfather. Based on true events from the authors’s family, this story is a stark reminder of the many atrocities faced for those in WWII.
The writing is so emotional and beautiful and I loved getting to know Isla and the history of her family. Heartbreaking at times, it is told with love and the magic of the rainbow is just wonderful.

Having loved the author's previous book "The Watchmaker of Dachau" , I was eager to delve into THE RAINBOW and while it is a heartbreaking story both in the past and present, for me it didn't quite reach that same height. But then, it was a pretty high bar to compete with, in my view. Having said that, THE RAINBOW is still an unforgettable tale that will have you reaching for the tissues and numb your senses.

The story begins with in Isla in 2015 England on a visit with her grandparents when she comes across a rainbow coloured silk scarf and an old newspaper clipping of two men, one of whom is her grandfather Tomasz Jasienski dressed in a German Nazi uniform. But this can't be right! Her granddad is Polish. He fought in the Polish army, not the Nazis. Maybe it is another Tomasz Jasienski. But the photo is clearly her granddad, of that Isla is certain. She cannot ask him as he is in the late-mid stages of dementia and while some days are lucid, many are not, and the last thing she wants to do is upset him by stirring up old memories. Then when her grandmother deflects any questions she asks, it merely arouses her curiosity.

And so begins Isla's quest for answers, for information about her grandfather's past and what really happened in that photo. All she has is the name and an address of her granddad's brother whom he has not seen or spoken to in seventy years and while they may have been estranged, Andrezj sent his brother a yearly Christmas card up until five years ago. Is he still alive? There was only one way to find out. Isla travels to Poland in search of Andrezj and the answers for which she seeks. She finds the gruff 99 year old living in a sheltered retirement home where he gives her some diaries that had been her grandfather's during the war.

Returning to England, Isla has the diaries translated from her grandfather's native Polish and through them she journeys back with Tomasz as a young boy in 1930 through to WW2, when he was forced into the German army.

The perspective then changes as we meet Tomasz in the summer of 1930 as a ten year old boy who meets a gypsy named Kapaldi living in a colourful caravan on a neighbouring farmer's land. To Tomasz, Kapaldi was a magical man who could make it rain and create rainbows. The first time Tomasz ever saw Kapaldi, he was dancing naked with nothing but a rainbow scarf around his neck. The same rainbow scarf Isla found in her grandfather's attic. She remembers the tales she was told as a girl about a magical man and rainbows that she thought were just fairy tales. When one day, Tomasz comes to see Kapaldi he finds some of the local lads beating him and taunting him so he jumps on the farmer Kowalski's tractor and makes way towards the young thugs hurting his friend. The lads scarpered in fear and Kapaldi thanked young Tomasz for saving his life. He promised him that he now owes him a debt and that one day he will save Tomasz's life too.

It was the summer of 1930 that Tomasz also met the young Zofia at a carnival where he won her a little wooden heart. Zofia kept the little heart as a reminder of happier times when in 1939 Poland was invaded by the Germans and life became even harder for the Polish. The couple are now 19 and in declaring their love, Tomasz tells Zofia he plans to ask her father permission to marry her and together they plan their future together. But then Tomasz is taken by the Nazis and forced to fight alongside them for the Reich. It is during a harrowing time in which they were to round up a group of partisans working against them that Tomasz tossed a grenade and killed them. The sight of the bodies with their innards spilling out etched into his memory forever. He is whisked away to the office of Captain Liebenez, who had seconded him to the German army in the first place, and awarded Tomasz the Iron Cross for his bravery for which the two men were photographed and immortalised forever in a newspaper clipping found wrapped in a silk scarf some seventy years later.

As a reward for his bravery and loyalty to the Reich, Tomasz was given the easier task of translator away from the frontline of battle, although he was often ridiculed by his peers and those above his rank as well as the public. Why? Because he was Polish. It was often heard said "Stupid Pole" and even the boarding house in which Liebenez installed him, the caretaker landlady said to him "Poles not welcome here" and he had to find somewhere else to eat, which left him wandering the unfamiliar streets in which he often found himself lost. On these occasions he found himself conjuring up the image of Kapaldi who then helped him find his way back. But he had seemed to so real, was it just his imagination or had he truly seen Kapaldi? They hadn't crossed paths in many years but somehow Tomasz always knew Kapaldi was there watching over him.

And then when a tragic even occurs that numbs Tomasz even further from which he feels he will never recover, he feels that Liebenez has been playing games with him all along and doesn't have his best interests at heart at all. Then Liebenez is promoted to Major whilst unbeknownst to Tomasz, his beloved Zofia is unwittingly caught up in the Major's games as well. Tomasz is now a broken man and on the last page of his diaries he writes..."What have I done?"

Intrigued even further by the ambiguity of her grandfather's final words on those pages, Isla travels back to Poland in the hope of uncovering the meaning behind those words. What had happened for her grandfather to have berated himself with those four words? This journey takes her even further into Poland back to where her grandfather grew up and it is there she meets Zofia, her grandfather's first love. And the truth of what really happened beyond those final words is finally revealed...as are the secrets of the past.

Based on a true story that was seven years in the making, THE RAINBOW is as emotional as it is heartbreaking. The plight in which young Polish boys faced at being forced into the German army is a little known fact that I had no idea about. The Nazis were cruel to almost everyone, even amongst themselves at times, in their quest for a pure Aryan race and their belief that they could do anything they wanted to anyone they chose. And the higher their rank the more entitled they were. This is seen in Major Liebenez and the games he played with Tomasz and Sofia. He seemed to be their friend but to him they were just a means to an end. I loathed him.

Tomasz, whilst the hero of the story, is not your regular hero. And he certainly doesn't consider himself to be one. He is an ordinary man with flaws. He lives in fear, he's made decisions that could put his life in jeopardy, choices that could be wrong and while there is nothing extraordinary about him, what he has been through is unthinkable. And as an old man approaching 95, Isla begins to wonder considering what he has lived through...is his dementia a curse or a blessing?

As for Isla herself. We don't know much about her. We know she is a lawyer but that in itself doesn't define her. What is important is her granddad and the truth behind the photo she found in the attic. Unlike most heroines of a story, particularly those who are lawyers, she doesn't focus on her life or career but on emotions and what it must have felt like to live through all that her grandfather and later Zofia lived through. The war was another time, another era, something that is beyond the realms of today's generation and yet Isla found herself immersed within the past and the emotional journey she took to uncover the secrets that had been lost to time.

THE RAINBOW is a beautiful story and heartbreaking at the same time that the author drew references from a true story that belongs to her own family. It is a bittersweet tale that the reader will find it hard not to shed tears. For me, it was the threat of losing those memories forever locked inside a mind that was slowly disappearing. Dementia is a cruel and unprejudiced disease that steals memories from the living to remain locked in the past unless they are detailed before they are lost forever. I didn't find Tomasz to be in the late stages of dementia as he was still lucid enough to regale Isla with the final chapter of his story and a late stage sufferer would barely able to talk let alone recall sporadic memories. I saw him as late-mid stage as it's the final stages that are the most heartbreaking of all.

There was one aspect I didn't really warm to in the story and one which I felt no connection to. For me, it didn't belong there in the way it was portrayed but would have been better served in another connection to the story. I won't say in what capacity so as not to spoil it.

A poignant read that carries through the generations, THE RAINBOW is a tale of family, love and lost secrets. Perfect for fans of historical WW2 fiction.

I would like to thank #CarlySchabowski, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheRainbow in exchange for an honest review.

I am a sucker for historical fiction based on Holocaust and WWII!!! Since I have read a book written by the same author, I was excited to read more books from her.

Just like the Watchmaker at Dachau, this story is also based on Holocaust but in a different way. The book divides between the Present Day England with Isla's point of view and the past based on Isla's grandfather, Tomasz's view. In the Present Day England, Isla comes across a photograph with the back written in German. It was a photograph of two German soldiers with their Nazi uniforms, posing in front of the camera. One of them was Isla's grandfather, Tomasz. Confused about the photograph, Isla sets on a journey to Poland, where her grandfather was from to discover the story of love, courage, betrayal and friendship.

Though the story is fictional, nonetheless, this story felt realistic. I have heard stories of how Polish men were forced to join Wehrmacht during the war and also the Soviet troops and this story is such a story. Many Polish men had no choice but to join the Wehrmacht and at the same time secretly involved in the resistance movement. The author has done tremendous research into the story, making it realistic and I do like the romantic relationship between Tomasz and Zofia. There were some parts in the book that was a bit emotional and heartbreaking -- the Germans' treatment towards Jews and Gypsies were so heartbreaking that I cried in some parts for the brutal treatments, particularly the part where Tomasz's gypsy friend gets killed. The book is unputdownable that you will be so hooked into the story, taking back to you those hard brutal times!

Overall, this is a tear-jerking, emotional and heartbreaking tale of courage, love and friendship that will keep you up all night--worth five stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

This is a beautiful book, told through dual timelines after Isla finds a photo of who she thinks is her grandfather and has to find out what it means. The topic is heart-wrenching, as any book on the Holocaust is, but this one is also a beautiful family story.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Isla is at her grandparents when her grandmother asks her to get some items from the attic. While up there, Isla finds a rainbow scarf and a photo of two men. The men are Nazis, and one of them men looks like her grandfather.

Isla questions her grandmother who says that her grandfather fought for Poland, not the Nazis. This begins Isla’s search for information about her grandfather, his past, and what really happened on the photo.

Isla takes a trip to Poland and meets her grandfather’s brother and through talking and reading diaries she journeys back to WWII, when her grandfather was forced into the German army.

The rest of the story is one of love, sacrifice, protecting others at any cost, and as with most stories set during this time, great loss.

I did not know that Polish citizens were forced into serving in the German army, often after their family was threatened and in some cases killed.

I could not stop reading this story. I was hooked from the beginning and could not wait to find out the whole story of what Isla’s grandfather and his family endured during WWII. This book made me think about the lengths people will go to when love is what motivates them. I will be thinking about this story for a long time and look forward to reading more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture, and Carly Schabowski for the copy of this book on exchange for a review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

This is a dual timeline book. In 2015, Isla chances upon an old newspaper article that makes her question everything she knows about her grandfather. Seeing her grandfather in a Nazi uniform shocks her. It sets her on a quest to find the truth behind it all. While looking for her grandfather's life story, she ends up finding a heart-rending love story at its heart.

Being set in Poland and told from the viewpoint of a Polish man forcibly conscripted in the German army was a unique and appealing premise. It was difficult to find fault with Tomasz even when he betrays his compatriots. Instead, you end up feeling his helplessness, his love for Zofia and his pain. The fact that the author Carly Schabowski took her grandfather's story as an inspiration for the book proves the fact that more such tales need to be told. The Rainbow by Carly Schabowski is one such book that would remain with you long after it ends.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for a copy of "The Rainbow" in exchange for my honest review.

Ms. Schabowski has once again written a moving story that will keep the reader turning pages to find out what happened to these characters.

The story starts with Isla in 2015 England finding an old newspaper clipping of her grandad Tomasz Jasienski in a German uniform during the war but her grandad is Polish. This starts her off on a quest to learn more about him. He is in the later stages of dementia and has good days and bad days. He has a brother Andrzej whom Isla has never met. She finds his address on an old envelope and goes to visit him in Poland. He gives her some old diaries which Isla has translated into English.

The story then is told from Tomasz's perspective in the summer of 1930 in Poland. He meets a gypsy named Kapaldi who has a rainbow scarf. He can make it rain and produce a rainbow. He befriends the young Tomasz.

Isla finds this rainbow scarf in her grandparents attic. She remembers being told stories when she was young about a magical man, a colourful caravan, magic tricks and rainbows. Now she wonders who her grandfather really was.

Tomasz meets Zofia in Poland at a carnival in 1930, where he wins her a wooden heart. During the winter of 1939 he tells her that he plans to ask permission to marry her. Only Tomasz is taken by the German army. In the summer of 1941 he is forced to work as a translator. Kapaldi promised him that he would look out for him and he sees him over the years just when he needs his help.

We learn that Kapaldi and Kowalski - the farmer who owns the land on which Kapaldi has his caravan are half brothers.

The winter of 1942 finds Tomasz in the Ukraine working for Major Liebenez. Tomasz has always felt that he was playing games with him. Zofia is also caught up in one of the Major's games.

Isla returns to Poland and meets her grandad's first love Zofia and she learns a lot of the truths behind the family secrets.

This book is a beautiful story of family, love and also great heartbreaks.

*The review contains spoilers*

Isla grew up listening to her grandfather’s stories from his childhood. Whether it is the magic man who could summon rainbows or the hardships he faced as a Polish soldier during WWII, Isla knew her grandfather as a caring, loving, and brave man who fought against the Nazis.
A chance trip to the attic in his home challenges all that Isla ever knew about him. What is his picture in a German uniform doing in the attic? Why did her grandfather fight for the Nazis? And who does that lovely rainbow scarf belong to?
Isla knows her grandpa is in no position to answer her questions. His dementia is worsening. Her Gran insists that the picture doesn’t belong to grandpa. Unable to resist her doubts and uncertainties, Isla starts her quest for truth.
Was her grandpa really a part of the German army? Why did he join their side? What happened in his life that no one wants to talk about it? Why is grandpa's elder brother distant from them and doesn’t want to meet his own brother?
As Isla digs more, she understands how life can tear apart families, break lovers, and crush a man while still giving him hope for a new dawn.
Based on a true story, The Rainbow shows us the past of the grandfather, Thomasz, an ordinary child who was forced to grow up at gunpoint and make a choice that changed his life forever. But could that choice have been avoided? No one knows the answer.
After reading the author’s previous book, The Watchmaker of Dachau, I knew I had to pick this one as soon as possible. The Rainbow is better when it comes to narration and execution of the delicate plot. The pace is decent, even if the author could have done without a certain track.
Despite so many characters and people involved, the story seamlessly flows between the past and present. We get to read the POV of more than one character (but only when necessary), and that adds depth to the narration.
We don’t know much about Isla, but we do know her important her grandpa is to her. She doesn’t jump to conclusions or worry about what it would do to her life and career. Her focus is on emotions. Such heroines are rather pleasing to read. However, for me, the heroine of the book would be Zofia. My, she’s just so good even if limited presence.
Thomasz is not your regular hero. In fact, he doesn’t even consider himself a hero. He’s an ordinary man with flaws. A man who is afraid; someone who has to make a choice and knows he could be wrong. There isn’t any remarkable about him, but everything he has lived through is beyond imaginable.
The plight of the Polish boys forced into the German army is hardly documented, and the author writes about such boys, drawing references and details from a true story (that belongs to her family). The author said she worked on the story for 7 years, and her dedication shows.
The emotions have still been artfully balanced, and finally, leave the reader with a bittersweet experience. The book was almost a 5-star until the author introduced a new track I could do without.
If only the author left out the supposed love track between Isla and Stefan. I couldn’t connect with it in the least. In fact, I thought Stefan would in some way be related to Kapaldi and was disappointed a little. They could have been friends, and the book would have worked better for me. Or maybe if Stefan had more role to play, I’d have seen the connection between him and Isla grow stronger.
To sum up, The Rainbow is a heartwarming story of life, choices, love, betrayal, and a faint hope to keep going in search of a better life.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bookouture

Such a great book. Hooks you right away and makes you wonder what is going to happen next. Pulls at your heart strings in all the right ways.

“It’s an important story, and we should tell before we are all forgotten” – how true!! What a great book! And a reminder that we need to ask questions about our heritage before it is too late.
Isla finds a picture of her grandfather in a uniform that is not what she was always told, but her grandfather has dementia, clear days and not so clear, and do you really want to ask questions when you don’t where their minds are at? She goes to Poland to ask her grandfather’s brother questions, and ends up with diaries, and more questions, and more connections made.
Emotions are on a constant up and down, my mind kept turning things over, even when I put the book down in between reading.
Thank you to Carly Shabowski for writing this book, NetGalley and Bookouture for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Rainbow by Carly Schabowski A different WWII historical fiction novel set in 1930s Poland during the Nazi takeover. Young Polish men were conscripted into the German Army and forced to fight against their own. Isla finds a photograph of her grandfather as a German soldier and sets out to find more of her grandfather, Thomasz's past. Things are not always as they seem on the surface.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

This read pulled me in, and made me think. How many others were there must have been put in this horrible situation? The author lets us meet these characters up close, and see the decisions that were made. What a horrible blight on history and so much evil prevailed, but we also meet the ones that were trying to help their country and risking their lives.
I really loved how the author wrapped this book up, what a gift!
A story not to be missed, and history not repeated!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookoutour, and was not required to give a positive review.

With grateful thanks to netgalley for an early copy in return for an honest opinion.
What an outstandingly beautiful book, touching on the horrific situation that so many found themselves in a tale of love and loss I can highly recommend this beautifully told tale❤

What a wonderfully written book about a horrific time period in history. This particular story, a search for the history of a grandfather, is much different than your typical story. You will find yourself wondering about Tomasz and his life... you will wonder... who is this Kapaldi... and how does their story end. There is a bit of mischief, a lot of love, and a great story to be told.

Wow! This book was absolutely amazing. I could not quit reading it. I highly recommend every pick this book up. It is one of the BEST I’ve read this year. I can not thank the author for writing this enough. Thank you to the publisher for giving me the chance to read this ARC!

Ahh so many emotions. This is a tale of perseverance and finding out the truth. A Heart wrenching tale of war, families and love. Over the years I’ve started to appreciate these stories and find the setting full of sadness but also full of love and personal triumphs. The hopeful tones kept me.emotionally invested and immersed fully.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc

“Sometimes finding the truth can be painful. But then, it can be liberating too.”

After reading ‘The Watchmaker of Dachau,’ I didn’t think Carly Schabowski’s newest book would reach the same heights….I was wrong! It’s truly an unforgettable novel about human kindness. She’ll numb your senses with dancing in the rain, mystic readings and rainbow scarves and then you slightly become aware of the crescendo of insidious fear before the atrocity and human suffering take center court. If you loved her second book, you’ll love this one; the same juxtaposition and the same bonds formed due to shared experiences.

Isla is home helping her grandmother prepare for her grandfather’s 95th birthday and finds a saved newspaper article featuring her grandfather in a Nazi uniform. It’s not what she expected to find when gathering photos for the celebration. Why? Well, her grandfather is Polish! This is his story.

Stories such as this one need to be published to remind us of (1) the atrocities in our world history but also (2) of the endurance and strength displayed in the desperate and uncertain times. I am shocked at the destructive power held in the hands of some at the expense of many. You’ll learn about little-known historical wartime experiences of Polish men and boys who were forcibly conscripted into the Wehrmacht. One-quarter of a million Polish boys like Tomasz, who was simply in town for ice cream, were forced into the German army.

Seven years in the making and born from her own family history, this tale has an authentic feel and centers around survival, human suffering and finding love within the backdrop of the desperate and uncertain times of 1940s Europe.

July 28, 2021

I was gifted this advance copy by Carly Schabowski, Bookouture and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.