The book "Overwrought Women", structured as a diary, narrates the love life of Lucy, a curious and sexually free woman. She marries a Ministry of Foreign Affairs employee, enchanted by his dancing skills, but quickly becomes bored and, feeling exploited, ends up separating from him. The protagonist, Lucy, a modern woman averse to banality, receives a diagnosis of "overwrought women" or "client with a nervous wreck" – a term that, at the time, encompassed various dissatisfied women. Lucy, however, challenges this label, questioning whether the desire to kiss her doctor merely means being human and nothing more. The narrative is rich with flirtations, romances, an intense social life, and some morphine use. Lucy shares her doubts and dissatisfaction with her close friends: Helen, a lesbian; Laura, a serial dater; Maggie, a cocaine user; and Daisy, a content mother of many children.

Maria Cecília Bandeira de Melo Vasconcelos, known by the pseudonym Chrysanthème, is a remarkable yet unfortunately forgotten figure in Brazilian literature. Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1870, Chrysanthème wrote a wide range of literary works during the 1920s and 1930s, including novels, chronicles, children's books, plays, and essays. Of the 16 books she published, few have survived the passage of time, and "Overwrought Women" (Enervadas, 1922) is one of the rare copies that can still be found. This novel is notable for its female characters who challenge the traditional roles imposed on women in society at that time.

The pseudonym Chrysanthème is not just an artistic name; it is also a cultural provocation. It refers to the popular novel by Pierre Loti (1887), which inspired Puccini's famous opera "Madame Butterfly." Loti's story involves the seduction of a man by a submissive geisha, who must be abandoned for him to fulfill his societal obligations. In "Enervadas," flowers lose their innocence and become symbols of stimulation and provocation, reflecting the complexity of the emotions and desires of the female characters.