The novel received mixed reviews, with some authors noting the relative weakness of Drabble's blending of fictional and biographical elements.

[2] When discussing the investigation of matrilineal traits in the novel, critic Yi-Lin Yu describes the relationship between Drabble and the fictional representation of her mother as fraught.

However, this approach isn't always regarded as very successful; as critic Kelly McWilliam describes in M/C Reviews, "the segments recreated through various family histories (in photographs and letters, for example) and fiction, are somewhat maladroit and conspicuous.

In particular, by focusing on mitochondrial DNA both in the prologue and the subsequent discussion of scientific and archaeological topics throughout the novel, Drabble deliberately excludes the fatherly line from the narrative.

[2] Similarly, the M/C Review, noted the relative ineffectiveness of the novels execution: "Overall, The Peppered Moth is a fascinating mixture of personal history threaded through a fictional narrative.