The novel's success stemmed from its careful accumulation of unsettlings that slowly eroded the reader's sense of safety.

Her unsettledness after the argument made it hard for her to sleep.

She paced unsettledly around the empty room, as if waiting for news that would change everything.

In the weeks after the factory closed, the town's unsettlednesses became visible in empty schedules, hesitant greetings, and lingering doubts.