Henry James is famed for the psychological depth of his characters; for his remarkable ability to penetrate to the inner life. Yet the story of his own inner life remains curiously obscure. The best known facts about James - his illustrious, wealthy family and famous siblings; his prolific literary output with its numerous quirky female heroines; his long-term bachelorhood, and the rumours that accompanied it; and his flamboyant adoption of British citizenship in 1915 - have created a certain mythology surrounding the author.