The journey of the 6th Doctor and Constance through the Second World War, now also accompanied by Flip, continues in this audio adventure which takes the TARDIS crew to liberated France.

With the fast bond between Constance and Flip which developed in Quicksilver (and I assume over the subsequent audio adventures which I haven’t actually listened to yet) fresh in my mind, it is quite affecting to see it put under a huge amount of strain in this adventure.

Arriving in a small French village, the Doctor, Constance and Flip quickly realise they are in Constance’s personal future and that the war is coming to an end, the Allies are pushing the Germans back towards Berlin and the French are dealing with the intense emotions of being liberated from German control and unfortunately seeking targets for their anger.

Pretty soon after arriving the time travellers are confronted by a disturbing scene. A young woman, Clementine, accused of collaborating and fraternising with a German soldier, is surrounded by a baying mob and about to have her hair shaved off. Flip wants to wade in and save the girl whereas Constance declares that what the group are doing is utterly reasonable and understandable. This opposition of views, caused by Constance and Flip’s very different points of origin and the morals derived from those, is the driving force behind this story’s narrative and it is extremely powerful.

The choices the two women make lead to Flip ending up, at one point in the story, in a burning building with Constance on the outside battling with her conscience for contributing to Flip ending up where she is. The fire itself has been caused by an alien creature which, it is revealed, is under the influence of one of the French locals, Lucien. Constance admires Lucien because he is part of the French resistance, but when it is revealed he is in control of the alien fire creature, her faith in his honour wavers.

The Doctor meanwhile has gained the trust of Allied soldiers passing through the village and one, in particular, Walter, has piqued his interest in fire he had seen in the sky – the same alien fire. These threads tie together as the story progresses and the TARDIS crew realise that Lucien and the fire creature are a real danger which needs to be controlled.

The time and place of this story is palpable and there are a number of excellent sequences: the German plane, on fire, crashing towards the Doctor and Constance; Flip and Clementine trapped inside a burning building and top of the list. the Doctor flying a Tiger Moth over the French countryside.

It was also lovely to hear Katarina Olsson back in the audios (something pointed out by Baker in the extras) in a very different role to what we are used to hearing her in – the Headhunter from the 8th Doctor/Lucie Miller audios.

This another story where the German characters are given more than two dimensions as terrible Nazis. It’s becoming something of a theme within many of these stories to humanise the German characters whilst not shying away from the horrific acts they committed. In a couple of the stories where this has been a feature, I have found it a little uncomfortable but it feels fitting for this story as the two German soldiers who aid the Doctor are victims of Lucien’s fire monster and have lose one comrade to it at the start of the story.

I found this story to be utterly riveting thoughout. The ‘monster’ is fierce and terrifying; the guest cast are well-drawn and the tension between Flip and Constance serves both characters extremely well. The Doctor gets a good chunk of action and the solution is neat and doesn’t try to paint Lucien as an irredeemable villain, but a man who has taken advantage of an opportunity to bring, as he sees it, justice to those who have wronged his nation. That his justice has tipped into vengeance is examined and dealt with but, ultimately, we, just like Constance, can fully appreciate what has driven him to the point he has reached in this story.

A strong story.