I do sympathise, Dale. Something similar happened to me with the one agency I sent THE WOLF AND THE LAMB to. They were in raptures to begin with - to the extent that I was taken aback - but then came the costing exercise and the sober fact that it was the first of a trilogy by a still unknown author. It was also historical and there was a long lead time for that genre, maybe three years or so. After eight or nine months of deliberation, I requested the return of the manuscript and gained the impression that they were so embarrassed, it was what they were waiting for. Other writers I know have waited even longer.

The fact also has to be faced that agents as a rule don't really want older hands. There's the likely 'nuisance' factor. They'd rather have young newbies who can be moulded to market trends.  

I couldn't find anyone willing to read the book after that and was appalled by the cavalier and rude attitude of many agents. (It became increasingly apparent that they have lost faith in their own judgement, such are the commercial pressures.) My late husband, G A Cole, a writer of academic books, just could not believe that novelists were treated in a totally different way to non-fiction authors.

In the end, I started self-publishing under my own imprint. The exercise has been great fun and I'm no worse off than by the conventional method. You can retain all your rights and the process of publicity can be ongoing because, if you choose POD, your books won't go out of print. Not wise to put this thought into the ether, but I suspect some kind of legislation will curb that eventually.

You never know, one day I might get to go to the ball! But it probably won't  be anytime soon, certainly not before the full trilogy's out. It would be great to be able to achieve it through one's own efforts.

Meantime, press on regardless!