It's two days before Christmas and Helsinki is battling a ruthless climate catastrophe: subway tunnels are flooded; abandoned vehicles are left burning in the streets; the authorities have issued warnings for malaria, tuberculosis, Ebola, and the plague. People are fleeing to the far north of Finland and Norway, where conditions are still tolerable. Social order is crumbling and private secruity firms have undermined the police force. Tapani Lehtinen, a struggling poet, is among the few still able and willing to live in the city. When Tapani's beloved wife, Johanna, a newpaper journalist, goes missing, he embarks on a frantic hunt for her. Johanna's disappearance seems to be connected to a story she was researching about a politically motivated serial killer know as "The Healer." While searching for Johanna, Tapani uncovers secrets from her past -- secrets that connect her to the very murders she was investigating.