[1] Unsettled Ground received starred reviews from Library Journal[2] and Booklist,[3] as well as positive reviews from Publishers Weekly,[4] NPR,[5] Los Angeles Times,[6] The Times Literary Supplement,[7] The Wall Street Journal,[8] The Guardian,[9] and Shelf Awareness.

[10] Writing for Booklist, Poornima Apte wrote, "Fuller ... paints a devastatingly haunting picture of abject poverty, especially in her descriptions of the houses they dwell in, each of which becomes a character in its own right.

This tale offers a remarkable peek into how the embrace of family can completely smother other aspects of life.

"[3] Shelf Awareness's Alice Martin echoed Apte's sentiment, stating, "Fuller's ability to craft nuanced and affecting characters.

And when the book's big dark secret is finally exhumed, the reader feels just as cheated as its protagonists do.