The Desired Woman

In Short

This novel explores the moral friction between high-society Atlanta and the rugged, traditional values of the Georgia mountains. At its core, it is a character study of Richard Mostyn, a wealthy broker whose life unravels under the weight of his own secrets, his reckless pursuit of a virtuous woman, and his inability to reconcile his material success with his spiritual dissatisfaction. Through the lens of 1910s Southern life, the narrative examines the possibility of redemption, the heavy price of social hypocrisy, and the enduring pull of simple, honest living in an increasingly commercialized age.

The Story

Richard Mostyn, an intense and high-strung Atlanta banker, finds himself increasingly disillusioned with his hollow, fast-paced life. His health suffers under the strain of business and his entanglement with a woman named Marie, whose influence he attempts to shed. While visiting the countryside, he encounters Dolly Drake, a young, spirited teacher whose intellectual ambition and profound purity captivate him. Mostyn, though married and socially prominent, becomes dangerously infatuated with Dolly, ignoring the warnings of those around him and the quiet disapproval of her uncle, John Webb.

As Mostyn’s obsession with Dolly grows, his double life begins to splinter. He is haunted by the past—specifically, a debt of justice owed to an old man named Jefferson Henderson, whom Mostyn had once wronged in a business deal. Simultaneously, his wife, Irene, becomes embroiled in an illicit romance of her own, leading to a public scandal that forces her to confront her own vanity and the cold judgment of the "Puritan" social circles they inhabit.

Mostyn’s internal collapse accelerates when Marie, spurned and vengeful, confronts him, and his peers begin to view his erratic behavior with mounting suspicion. The narrative tension reaches a breaking point as the facade of the wealthy banker finally drops. Mostyn decides to liquidate his assets, making a massive, anonymous restitution to Henderson—a gesture that finally grants him a measure of inner peace and freedom from his past.

In the end, the characters are transformed by their respective reckonings. Mostyn, stripped of his former identity, finds himself alone but spiritually unburdened. He travels to the countryside, where he finds Dolly—now happily married and settled into the life she cherished—and eventually forms a tender, uncle-like bond with her child. The book concludes with Mostyn finding a quiet, long-sought solace in the simplicity of the rural world, having traded his status as a "king of finance" for the humble, human connections he once viewed with condescension. The cycle of his destructive ambition is broken, leaving him in a place of quiet, reflective redemption.

How It Unfolds

The Banker's Burden The story opens in an Atlanta bank, where Mostyn’s colleagues express concern over his fragile health and erratic behavior. He is portrayed as a man stretched to his limit, haunted by his own "strenuous" lifestyle.

The Countryside Contrast Mostyn seeks refuge in the rural districts, where he meets Dolly Drake, a young woman whose intellectual passion and moral clarity contrast sharply with the city’s vapid social scene. Their connection forms the emotional pivot of the book, fueling Mostyn’s desire to escape his former life.

The Web of Scandal Secret debts, spurned lovers, and failing marriages force the protagonists to confront the consequences of their public masks. Mostyn is increasingly blackmailed by his own past, while the social elite of his circle turn their cold judgment toward his wife.

The Act of Restitution Mostyn decides to leave his business empire behind, liquidating his wealth to settle a long-standing debt to Jefferson Henderson. This decisive act strips away his prestige but paves the way for his eventual emotional liberation.

The Final Reconciliation Years later, a transformed Mostyn visits the countryside to see Dolly, who has built a life of domestic contentment. He leaves behind his former persona, finding peace in the simple, warm embrace of the next generation.

The People

Richard Mostyn is the central figure—a man whose wealth and influence conceal a deep, gnawing unhappiness. He begins as a "contemptible" figure of privilege but undergoes a painful stripping away of his ego to reach a state of grace. Dolly Drake is the "desired woman," whose strength of character and "fathomless hazel depths" serve as the moral compass of the story. She remains steadfast, eventually choosing a life of rustic simplicity over the hollow allure of the city. John Webb, her uncle, acts as a grounded, sharp-tongued observer of the "upstart" city folk, representing the common-sense integrity that Mostyn eventually learns to respect. Finally, Jefferson Henderson serves as the catalyst for Mostyn’s redemption, representing the human cost of the banker's early, ruthless ambition.

In Its Own Voice

"Christ wouldn't be for all time, as He is, if His best ideas were acceptable to such a grossly material age as ours."

Dolly argues for the relevance of spiritual ideals during a heated debate at a community meeting.

"I've been vain, silly, mad; I could crawl in the dust and kiss the feet of an unsullied shop-girl."

After being caught in a scandal, Irene Mitchell experiences a painful, sudden clarity about her own social posturing.

"I want to be. Will you--would you mind giving your old uncle a hug with--with both your arms?"

Mostyn finds his long-sought peace in a quiet, tender moment with Dolly’s young son.

What It's Really About

At its heart, the book is an inquiry into the cost of "grossly material" success. It examines the tension between the city—symbolized by automobiles, social gossip, and cold ambition—and the rural landscape, which represents the possibility of a "natural" life. The narrative argues that true character is forged not in the accumulation of wealth, but in the painful process of facing one's own hypocrisies. It asks whether a man who has lived entirely for himself can ever truly earn his way back into a life of genuine human connection. The answer, as presented here, lies in the act of letting go: shedding the armor of status to find value in the simple, unadorned truth of one’s own heart.

Why Read It Today

This book will resonate with those who enjoy character-driven fiction that examines the "hollow man" archetype. It captures a distinct moment in Southern history, where the rapid encroachment of industrialization and "new money" clashed with established, traditional ways of living. Readers will find the prose warm yet precise, though they should be prepared for the period-specific dialect and the sometimes stark, black-and-white moral judgments that define the era’s literature.

The most striking aspect of the experience is the slow, deliberate unraveling of Mostyn’s pride. While the length and the slow pace of the middle chapters may challenge a modern reader used to faster plots, the emotional payoff—a quiet, resonant ending—is worth the journey. You will likely walk away thinking about the way we construct our public selves and the exhausting, often futile effort required to maintain a life that doesn't align with our deepest, often ignored, moral intuitions. It is a story about the grace found in starting over, and the finality of choosing, at last, to be honest with oneself.