Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Daredevils who Found Hitler’s Lost Submarine

by Robert Kurson

Brought to you by Penguin.

The remarkable true story of two amateur divers who discover a World War Two German U-Boat sunk 60 miles off the eastern coast of America

In 1991, 60 miles off the coast of New Jersey, at the incredible depth of 230 feet underwater, two amateur divers, John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, find what divers dream an undisturbed wreck that they soon identify as a German U-boat.

But there is no official record of this warship, and no historian or government can solve the puzzle. So this unlikely duo and their team of daredevil divers embark on a perilous to identify the shadowy vessel who they've nicknamed 'U-Who'. But plunging into the murky depths raises its own questions, and not everybody will make it back to the surface.

After years of increasingly risky diving, painstaking archival research, and gaining the trust of retired U-boat crew, the team finally identify it as U-869 and work out what on earth it’s doing there. But Chatterton and Kohler, whose rivalry has turned to friendship won't stop there. In an ending worth of a Steven Spielberg film, they decide to trace the families of the men who died on U-869, the men whose bones they agreed they wouldn't disturb.

It’s a story of – among other things – persistence, ingenuity and a shared obsession…

'This book is a work of art' RYAN HOLIDAY
'A pulse-quickening real-life thriller' New York Times
'A memorable story, beautifully told' The Times

© Robert Kurson 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

Audible Audio

Expected publication August 13, 2026

About the author

Robert Kurson is an American author, best known for his bestselling book, "Shadow Divers," the true story of two Americans who discover a sunken World War II German U-boat and for "Crashing Through," the story of an entrepreneur who regains his eyesight after a lifetime of blindness.

Kurson began his career as an attorney, graduating from Harvard Law School and practicing real estate law. His professional writing career began at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he started as a sports agate clerk and soon gained a full-time features writing job. In 2000, Esquire published “My Favorite Teacher,” his first magazine story, which became a finalist for a National Magazine Award. He moved from the Sun-Times to Chicago magazine, then to Esquire, where he won a National Magazine Award and was a contributing editor for years. His stories have appeared in Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, and other publications. He lives in Chicago.