Henry James's great humane masterpiece The Portrait of a Lady (1881) the story of a young spirited American woman "affronting her destiny" is many readers' favourite of his books. All his critics and biographers put it at the centre of his life and work. It is his turning-point. From being a popular and promising author specialising in Americans in Europe (Daisy Miller The Europeans The American) he became an important renowned figure acknowledged as a "master" of consciousness cultural perceptions humour subtlety and depth.

- Hermione Lee The Guardian