This book was written in Hinckley and Parma, Ohio between July 2000 and April 2001. The year before John Stover wrote it, a friend of his had a heart attack and two days later, a triple bypass surgery. Seeing someone he cares about go through that experience influenced the author in ways related to the book. It put things in perspective.
Along with trying to write a mystery/suspense story, some of the elements Stover tried to deal with are love, loss, true friendship and the issues of prejudice and tolerance.