The Saboteur by Andrew Gross

This is not really my sort of story.  My father and my father-in-law were huge fans of the unsung heroism of some during WWII.  I did not know, but this story was an epic movie starring Kirk Douglas called the Heroes of Telemark (yet to be seen).

This is a work of historical fiction based on the true life stories of the Norwegian Freedom Fighters assigned the seemingly impossible task of destroying the Nazis’ supply of heavy water before it could be used to produce an atomic bomb. I read it because my parents were reading it for their book club, and we also had family in town.  They read the book that is the actual account of this actual event, and so it was nice to juxtapose that with the elements of the book that are added for propelling the story. 
Kurt Nordstrum was an engineering student in Oslo in 1940 when the Nazis invaded. His whole life changes as he fights with his friends in the Norwegian resistance. The friendships, bravery and strength of these men and women is highlighted in this story.  The book allows one to feel the tension between love for country, the resistance to the Nazi's and the atmosphere of evil that comes about with an occupying force.  Who to trust, who not to trust, how to balance impending casualties and the risks that everyday people took in the war.  While the Nazi's were really not on the right track when it came to developing an atomic bomb, these men knew that not, and risked everything to stop them.