Desire for the Loved One's Return

When Helen Graham moves into old Wildfell Hall with her little son Arthur, the rustic neighborhood comes alive with gossip and speculation, particularly when saturnine Mr. Lawrence (who bears an uncanny resemblance to the child) begins to visit her clandestinely. Local gentleman farmer Gilbert Markham falls in love with her almost against his will, despite rumors that she supports herself by the work of her hands and can give no account of her origins. Only when her diary comes into Markham’s hands do we find out why she has so exiled herself. 

As the chapters of the diary unfold, explicit scenes of adultery, seduction, and debauchery show why the novel was so shocking when it was first published, easily outselling the more famous debut novels of the three Brontë sisters.