'Devious Maids' will air a second season on Lifetime

Lifetime has ordered a second season of the soapy drama "Devious Maids."

Lifetime executive vice president and general manager Rob Sharenow said on Tuesday that the series, from Marc Cherry and Eva Longoria, has received a renewal for 13 more episodes.

The series, which stars Ana Ortiz, Dania Ramirez, Roselyn Sanchez, Edy Ganem and Judy Reyes, was initially passed over by ABC – ABC Studios produces the series – before being picked up by Lifetime.

Though the series – which is based on the Mexican telenova "Ellas son la Alegría del Hogar" and follows the exploits of five ambitious maids as they work for wealthy Beverly Hills residents – got off to a lukewarm start with its June 23 premiere, drawing 2 million total viewers, the series has since by watched by nearly 23 million total viewers, according to Lifetime.

"Devious Maids" is also Lifetime's fastest-growing drama in the network's history and has landed Lifetime in first place among cable networks in the Sunday at 10 p.m. timeslot.