 Initially intended as a standalone novel, Peters did not write a sequel for six years.As the author was juggling several book series written under two pseudonyms, the Amelia Peabody series progressed slowly at first, with new installments published sporadically in intervals varying between two and four years.As the series became more commercially successful in the mid 1990s, however, the pace increased and by the end of the decade new books were appearing at the rate of one annually, with many of the later books in the series appearing on "The New York Times Bestseller List" for fiction.