I love a good biography, which this most certainly is, but what impressed me most about this one was how Richard Holmes focussed on how scientific advancements, particularly to do with evolution and astronomy, affected Victorian society, and influenced Tennyson's thoughts and poetry. His university life, friendships and travels are covered in detail, along with his early romances, and the long gestation period of the poems that would become In Memoriam. I shall no doubt return to reading some of the poems very soon, but also I expect to delve a bit deeper into how these new ideas were received by the Victorians in general. Many thanks to the publishers for a proof copy to read and review.