Sergeant Tom's final operation of the war sets him and George against the retreating Japanese in Burma, 1945. The hoped for alliance with Burmese nationalists runs into trouble, and they are pursued over mountains and through jungles as they head for Mandalay. Phil Watson hoped to end his service with the Royal Navy in a quiet backwater, but is pitched into frontline combat in the Bay of Bengal. In this final book of the series, the three friends find themselves battling fiercely through the final, torrid months of the war in Burma, desperate to survive and to return to their loved ones.