Review: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gysai

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Transcendent Kingdom was a thought provoking, raw, and honest novel. It’s captivating and gripping. You just can’t read one page. The book sucks you in. 

The book is centered on Gifty, who is a six year PhD neuroscience candidate at Standard. Years ago, her brother passed due to an overdose and before that her father left and never returned. So it’s just been her and her suicidal mother. Throughout the novel, Gifty finds herself reflecting on her childhood faith and grappling with the evangelical church she was raised in, and tries to unlock the scientific basis for her suffering. 

This was a deeply raw book. The story felt extremely real and I felt like I was reading a memoir. This is a story about faith, addition, and science and so many other topics. At no point in the book does it feel overwhelming or too much, everything is blended carefully with a nice flow. It’s simply a beautiful novel and there were several moments where I felt my heart getting broken. 

Like mentioned previously, Gifty’s brother had overdosed and her mother had depression. And the family aspect of this book simply hit me hard. And the emotion just jumped off the page. It is hard to describe it, but the writing felt deeply personal and sophisticated.  There were so many moments that held so much weight. It just is brillant. 

Final thoughts 

Transcendent Kingdom is a gripping intimate and honest novel about family, love, addiction, religion and so much more. It is deeply moving and definitely a must read.