Today’s Women in SF&F Month guest is Tesia Tsai! Her young adult fantasy novel released earlier this week, Deathly Fates, is described as a “a sweeping debut inspired by the Chinese folk practice of necromancy…perfect for fans of Descendant of the Crane, The Bone Shard Daughter, and A Magic Steeped in Poison.” I’m happy she’s here today to share about the women she writes in “The Fate of the Eldest Daughter.”

About Deathly Fates:

A sweeping debut inspired by the Chinese folk practice of necromancy, Deathly Fates is perfect for fans of Descendant of the Crane, The Bone Shard Daughter, and A Magic Steeped in Poison.

As a priestess paid to guide the deceased home, Kang Siying has never feared death. However, when her beloved father collapses, Siying realizes that even she is not free from the cruel grasp of mortality. Desperate to provide her father with the medical aid he needs, Siying accepts a dangerous job that promises a generous commission, and travels to a hostile state to retrieve the corpse of a missing prince.

But the moment Siying places her reanimation talisman on the dead prince’s head, rather than make the corpse obedient to Siying’s commands, the talisman brings the prince back to life. Worse, he won’t stay alive for long—not unless he absorbs enough qi, or life force, to keep his soul anchored to his body.

In return for a reward worth twice her original commission, Siying agrees to aid the frustratingly handsome prince in finding and purifying evil spirits for their qi. As they journey across the countryside, encountering vengeful ghosts and enemy spies alike, they gradually uncover dark secrets about the prince’s death—secrets that could endanger both Siying’s father and their entire kingdom.

THE FATE OF THE ELDEST DAUGHTER

“Afflicted by a terminal uniqueness” is how songwriter Taylor Swift describes the experience of being an eldest daughter. I find afflicted to be an apt word for how I write my female protagonists, including Siying in Deathly Fates. Because I’m an eldest daughter too, this “terminal” condition perpetually permeates my characters, whether they’re the oldest or not. Eldest daughters always want more, but they go about it in all the wrong ways. They want independence, praise, peace, fulfillment⁠—and they believe that if they just work hard enough, sacrifice enough, and impress the right people, they can achieve it all.

But often, they⁠ can’t.

And that’s a paradox I love exploring in my novels. I write women I deeply relate to⁠—ones who really are trying their best but who too easily burn themselves out doing what they’ve been taught is the right, or only, way. I start their stories in that place of iron stubbornness, allowing them to suffer the consequences of their well-intentioned actions. And then I let them grow in other directions. I nudge them down paths that offer a different way, a different answer, to obtaining happiness, not only for their loved ones but also for them. Because that’s really what eldest daughters⁠—and most people⁠—want: to thrive alongside those they care about.

Admittedly, this is a goal I’m still working toward constantly in my own life. Which is probably why my characters become the guinea pigs to my personal research on how to hold tight to myself while loving others. Through women like Siying, and in the safety net of fiction, I convince myself that the alternative is possible, that I don’t have to bury my own heart to make room for another’s. I give myself a peek into what my life could be like when I put my needs first and see how that actually benefits everyone around me.

This affliction⁠ of being the “perfect” eldest daughter may be chronic, but it doesn’t have to be terminal. And ultimately, that’s what I hope my stories can convey to the readers who come across them⁠—the overachieving martyrs, selfless caretakers, and capable, bright women who deserve to be truly happy.

Photography by Stephen Bentley Tesia Tsai was born in Los Angeles to immigrant parents from Taiwan. She currently teaches at Brigham Young University, and lives with her husband, two cats, and a dog in Utah. When not writing or reading, she enjoys watching Asian dramas, playing video games, and planning her next trip.