their circle. Reception Return to Peyton Place received harsh reviews; Edmund Fuller in the New York Times wrote, "This sequel to 'Peyton Place' has no interest as a novel... [I]t is foolish writing, cynical publishing and bad reading." Time magazine said, "[T]he sequel bears all the marks of a book whacked together on a long weekend... Return has little more scene-setting than a limerick, and the characterization is negligible." Metalious herself held the work in poor esteem, believing herself pressured by Hollywood producer Jerry Wald to write the sequel. In a press conference she held in New York in December 1959, she said "This isn't a novel; it's a Hollywood treatment... It was never intended to be anything else. It was a foul, rotten trick. They made a hell of a lot on Peyton Place, and they wanted to ride the gravy train." Sales of the sequel did not approach those of the original book: While Peyton Place remained on the New York Times best seller list for 76 weeks, Return to Peyton Place spent just three (non-consecutive) weeks on the list, peaking at #13. According to Metalious biographer Emily Toth, the paperback edition sold four million copies, which was half of what the first novel sold. Adaptations A 1961 film adaptation was directed by José Ferrer. A daytime drama entitled Return to Peyton Place aired on NBC from April 3, 1972 to January 4, 1974, but the soap opera was a continuation of the primetime television series Peyton Place rather than an adaptation of the book. References 1959 American novels Sequel novels Novels about writers American novels adapted into films Julian Messner books