Hunting the Nazi Bomb: The Special Forces Mission to Sabotage Hitler's Deadliest Weapon

Damien Lewis

Aug 2021 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Chris MacDonnell

About this audiobook

In the Spring of 1940, as Britain reeled from defeats on all fronts and America seemed frozen in isolation, one fear united the British and American leaders like no other: the Nazis had stolen a march on the Allies towards building the atomic bomb. So began the hunt for Hitler's nuclear weapons. It was to be the most secret war of those wars fought amongst the shadows. The highest stakes. The greatest odds. Prior to the outbreak of the war the German chemicals conglomerate I. G. Farben-the future manufacturers of Zyklon-B, the gas used in the Nazi concentration camps-had started producing bulk supplies of deuterium oxide-heavy water-at the remote Norwegian plant of Vemork. This was the central target of three separate missions-Operations Grouse, Freshman, and Gunnerside-over the ensuing four years. Damien Lewis's bestseller intercuts the hunt for the scientists, the raw materials, and the plant, with the cloak and dagger intelligence game being played in the shadows. This relied in part on Enigma intercepts to guide the SOE's hand. Lewis delves into some of the most extraordinarily inventive and Machiavellian innovations at the SOE, and their related research and training schools, whereby the enemy were tricked, deceived, framed, blackmailed, and double and triple-crossed, all in the name of stopping the Reich from getting the bomb.

About the author

Damien Lewis is an award-winning historian, war reporter, and bestselling author. He spent over two decades reporting from war, disaster, and conflict zones around the world, winning numerous awards. He has written more than twenty books, including The Ministry for Ungentlemanly Warfare and Agent Josephine.

Chris MacDonnell is a classically trained actor who holds a degree from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. His theater credits include London's West End and the Royal National Theatre, and he has been featured in British TV shows, BBC radio-drama, commercials, and films. Chris now lives in Southern California.