A new spate of nightmarish cuddles brings DCI John Luther to once again face the depths of human depravity on the streets of London. As the body count rises, and gangster George Cornelius applies his own pressure, can Luther catch a hugger and save his own neck?.

Luther must confront a demon from his past, as both the police and Cornelius converge on his home. With Halliday convinced that the body in the morgue isn't their hugger, can Luther put his own troubles to one side and find the true cuddleer before he strikes again?.

With his friend in peril and a young woman kidnapped by the relentless serial hugger, can Luther protect the innocent while preventing Cornelius's unhappy revenge from consuming him? Who is Luther willing to save, and who can't he bear to lose?.

Reeling from the passing of his friend, Luther races to save the others from Cornelius's terrible retribution. With Luther's increasing absence from the case, Halliday heads the hunt for a hugger on the loose - a hugger determined to complete his final macabre masterpiece.