I think that book and its sequels -- which I read at probably much too young an age -- are at least partly responsible for my interest in archaeology as an adult. It was really mindblowing in my mid-to-late teens to start looking all of that stuff up and realizing that she used a lot of real archaeological sites, actual artifacts, and anthropological remains in creating her characters. Looking through books of actual archaeological information and going "oh, I know what THAT is!" -- having a genuine emotional connection to it -- was really helpful in keeping me focused and interested.