Book review: Lee Child's Blue Moon and The Mountbattens

Blue Moon - Lee Child
Reacher sits in the back of a Greyhound bus watching an old man asleep in his seat, a fat envelope of money about to slip from his pocket. Reacher's also watching a guy who would like to get his hands on that money. Ain't gonna happen. The old man is grateful and thanks Reacher but turns down Reacher's offer to help him home. Huh? He's vulnerable, frightened, and clearly in big trouble.
Coincidentally (or is it? - it's a Reacher novel, after all), this city has a gang problem. The Albanians vs. Ukrainians. Is that why the man is so scared? Will Reacher sit back and let bad things happen? Or can he twist the situation to everyone's benefit?
"This is a random universe," he says. "Once in a blue moon things turn out just right."
The Mountbattens - Andrew Lownie
A new biography of the glamorous couple behind the modern royal family, from award-winning author Andrew Lownie.
A major figure behind his nephew Philip's marriage to Queen Elizabeth II and instrumental in the royal family taking the Mountbatten name, Dickie Mountbatten's career included being Supreme Allied Commander of South East Asia during World War Two and the last Viceroy of India.
Once the richest woman in Britain and a playgirl who enjoyed numerous affairs, Edwina Mountbatten emerged from World War Two as a magnetic and talented charity worker loved around the world.
From the prize-winning and bestselling historian, Andrew Lownie, comes a nuanced portrayal of two very unusual people and their complex marriage to mark the 40th anniversary of Lord Mountbatten's assassination by the IRA.
From British high society and the South of France to the battlefields of Burma and the Viceroy's House, this is a rich and filmic story whose characters include all the key figures of the Second World War. From Churchill and Montgomery to Roosevelt and Eisenhower; the Royal Family, including the Duke of Windsor, George VI, the Queen, Prince Philip and Prince Charles; to Charlie Chaplin, Noel Coward, Salvador Dali, George Gershwin, Grace Kelly and Merle Oberon.LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVE