By George Mann and Cavan Scott, read by Clare Higgins

BBC Audio, out now

The search for John Dee’s “Angel” leads the Doctor, Brandon and Alex to Karn…

Do not read the back cover blurb on this final story in the latest 12th Doctor audio quartet – it gives away a good half of the plot of this episode, and it’s better to have the surprises and twists presented to you as Mann and Scott intended! The Lost Flame brings in the Sisterhood of Karn with Clare Higgins thus making a very appropriate narrator, given her character, Ohila, is central to this part of the story. She’s excellent as an audiobook narrator – her characters are distinctive, with Capaldi’s Scottish accent clearly delineated, and strong American tones for Brandon and Alex.

Loose ends are wrapped up neatly in this finale, with the potential for further adventures featuring at least one of the guest characters (although how that’s done is beginning to feel a bit overused, albeit that Mann and Scott presumably were unaware of the finale of Series 10 when this was written). Having the same non-TV companions feature through the four stories has made a nice change, and I hope that a similar format can be used to fill the gap before Jodie Whittaker’s 13th Doctor takes the reins properly next year.

The sound design throughout the quartet has been well done, although the music score has sometimes felt a little out of place – but perhaps that’s as much that it’s not the sort of music we’ve grown accustomed to accompanying the 12th Doctor.

Verdict: A highly enjoyable conclusion. 8/10

Paul Simpson