A Stellar Spy

by Maya Darjani

Devoted mother and career woman.

A sleeper agent, poised to act.

Tessa lives a double life. She’s the security counselor to Finn, the leader of the planet.

He’s her ex-husband and father of her children.

She’s still in love with him.

But she has a far worse problem. Tessa is also a deep cover operative for an enemy planet, and turns out, her next mission is to betray him. And when her lives collide, she has to fail her family, or forsake her ideals.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy

316 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 12, 2025

About the author

Maya Darjani is a writer and photographer from the heartland of America who writes genre-bending fiction about badass women, dual loyalty, and the false promise of patriotism.

Reviews

[Jeremy Schwab · Rating 4 out of 5]

**I was provided an E-copy of this book from the Author in return for an honest read and review.**


“A Stellar Spy” by author Maya Darjani book 1 (I'm hoping) in her spy thriller series “Children of Gaia” Now I say “hopefully” because we haven't been given a definite from the author that she will be continuing this story…but if you read the ‘Afterword’ excerpt at the end of the book and taking into account the way the book ended, Maya eludes to possibly doing just that. And boy do I hope to see this continued into more because, as this being the first book from the author I've read, I found myself quite enjoying the writing style and creativity Darjani brings to her readers. Deception, betrayal, sacrifice and love are front and center in this tech and magic filled, undercover tale of dual identities!


Tessa Daevana is our MC and single PoV throughout this sneaky and action laced game of lies, morals, family and past decisions. Tessa, locked into a life of deception (created by her own actions) in a bid to protect the family she has built with her ex-husband…and ex-target Finn, and try to leave behind the person she once was, for the love and devotion she never saw coming when she landed on the unknown planet. An attack targeted at her family sets into motion a wild series of hidden plots and schemes that threaten the lives she will so vehemently defend…at any cost and resource she has. 🔥


This brings me to the very intriguing advanced technology and soft magic system our author introduced in this book. Tessa, with the background she carries, and current position she holds, has a plethora of resources to tap into and help to unravel this dangerous attack…only to watch it unfold into one of the biggest jobs she will find herself involved in. Flying vehicles, digital realms, multiple habitual plants, and a deceptively useful magic system catapult us through the pages of this smoke and mirrors style adventure…to a frantic and “quite frankly” open ending. 🤯


During my read, and new found enjoyment of a new author's creative writing style, I did find myself with a minor (for me at least) issue. For me, the book with its obvious deep backstories prior to our start, vast tech, multiple planets and what seemed to be a fairly unique governmental system…the book brushed past most of this in order to (in the author's words) keep a thriller style pace. I understand the logic to that statement, but for me, (and maybe this is because I'm normally drawn to larger “high fantasy” reads that take world building and character depth to crazy lengths) the book could have easily been about 200 or so pages longer and gave us the set up backstory to our MC and her current situation…along with more detail of the locations we spent our time in, as well as more explanation to the complexity of the hierarchy this civilization runs on. The love and sacrifice of Tessa would have been driven home to us readers much better and we would have had that emotional connection to the MC that makes us fall in love with these stories. 


With that said, as stated in the beginning of this review I quite enjoyed this change of genre for myself and found a new author's works to keep an eye on. I hope to see this series continue and see how this plays out for our deceptive and strong MC and the people in her chaotic, yet adventurous life! Maya, I had a blast with this and if the next entry finds my Kindle ..with more content and detail…you just may have yourself the next ‘blink and you miss it’ game of shadows. 🍻


3.5⭐ (rounded up) for me and this new entry into my library of keepers ..and yes a keeper this is. Flesh out the wonderful world and characters created and this is an easy 4⭐ or better. I hope to see more of this chapter in your career Maya Darjani and I hope I didn't remove myself from your early reader list with this review. Thank you again for this adventure! 📚


 In a throwback to my youth…”Where in the worlds is Tessa Daevana?!” I want more! 😋

This review is available on Grimoire Ink Reviews

[BlueSmokeFire Hi, I'm Bob - · Rating 5 out of 5]

Check out the full review on SFFINSIDERS.COM

With seamless flow and expert timing, Stellar Spy builds an inevitable suspense. It is an emotionally charged journey and a joy to read from start to finish.

Investing in Darjani's characters isn't just easy; it's automatic...

A great part of the strength of the book lies in its execution. Wonderfully timed and charged with emotion, the narrative flows with a seamlessness that makes the building suspense feel inevitable. Quite simply, it was a joy to read from start to finish...

[Vivian Cicero · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will clarify this rating to show as 4.25 and I received it as an ARC, and this is my unbiased review.

I was very excited to start this book, as I was in need of a change of “flavor” from my slew of fantasy novels I’d been reading nonstop. Sci fi with a murder mystery was exactly what the Dr ordered. Or the author, really…

So I was really intrigued by the premise of this story. A sci fi spy thriller?!?? Sign me right up! At the start, we meet Counselor Tessa Daevana, as she’s at a security checkpoint in her skip, a vehicle that can hover, fly, and do other cool tech stuff. There has been an explosion, and she’s checking in at the Rose Palais, where her ex husband, the Premier, and their children live.

Another fun thing about this story; MAGIC. Unexpected in a sci fi novel, but it works. But it is not allowed for everybody to use it. Because some have a strong innate gift, and as we all know, people who are different are suspect. So there is this group, the Navasi, who are chipped in order to prevent them from using their magic. Fear is the ultimate motivator for hate, and they are a feared and hated group.

That’s something I loved about Maya’s story; she didn’t shy away from tough subjects, those that make the reader take a look in a mirror to see what is reflected there. Some good old uncomfortable squirming about our own biases. It’s a good way to check ourselves.

But back to the chaos at hand, and some covert sleuthing.

Tessa is now the security advisor for Finnegan Daevana IV. He’s the Premier of Rulani, and Tessa’s ex. Tessa has kept a secret hidden from him, and all others in their government. She’s a Navasi, like those of an independent planet which is alive with magic. Every person there possesses it innately. And they are skilled in creating things that are technologically advanced. So all Navasi are chipped, as a measure to suppress their access to their magic.

I liked the way Maya uses little inserts that reflect Tessa’s assessments of those she encounters, interacts with. It starts with their name, age, then ends with Pressure point: and what their weakness is. In her case, it’s her kids. In Finn’s, it’s Creating a legacy. And she does it unerringly.

Now, this is where things take a decided shift into espionage. Tessa’s real background and a bit of smuggled tech now come front and center to the plot. And an old flame is the means of Tessa achieving her long dormant directive. Calculating, yet still wracked with guilt about the previous shattering of their affair, Tessa is once again turning to her past as a spy.

The story was interesting to me, because there are elements of sci fi, with the very unexpected insertion of magic. It isn’t hard sci fi, however the tech is advanced, certainly from our present perspective. Nano technology, space travel, manipulating the world around you.

Maya’s writing is crisp, and really immersive without feeling like you’re being smothered with a weighted blanket. The characters are interesting, as is this world she’s created to seat the story around. Surly teenagers, power happy ex’es, explosions, spies, and the threat of “others” who are different. It’s a spotlight on humanity, and the little prejudices we carry around with us, usually under the guise of doing things for the greater good. A passage I highlighted because it really captured the essence of the saviour complex is this; “Of course he wants to feed the hungry, and that’s what makes this so insidious. To argue against it is to argue against mercy. The saints among us are the most dangerous sinners, because their sin is borne of good intention.”

I’ll leave you to ruminate on that as you hit “order” for this book.

[Ed Crocker · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good genre mix, but one I don’t see that often is sci-fi (or in this case, space fantasy, sci-fi with magic, think Star Wars not Star Trek) mixed with a good old-fashioned spy story. Enter indie author Maya Darjani and A Stellar Spy, Book 1 of the Children of Gaia series, which takes the witty writing and strong characters of her space opera series Broken Union and transposes them into a science fantasy spy thriller. If the idea of a double agent employing all their spy tricks to avoid detection, but in a society of advanced tech and magic appeals, then I have good news, because not only do you get this but you also get a superbly written, darkly funny, twisty, thrilling adventure with a heartbreaking emotional core. I knew Darjani was good, but this is really, really good and if you like spies and magic then you need this more than a blood transfusion after a vampire orgy.

Plot wise, we are on the planet of Rula, home to both standard humans and the Navasi, human magic users, most of whom are forced to be chipped—have their magic curbed—to live in society. Tessa Daevana came to Rula years ago as a spy for the planet Elitha, where the Navasi live free. But in the process she fell in love with Finn, an ambitious, idealistic politician, and left her spy life behind. Finn became the planet’s president, she his wife, with two kids. Now divorced, she’s his security advisor and still sees her family.

But when an unchipped Navasi attempts to hurt her family, the government decides to activate a program to curb all their magic, which Tessa wants to stop, so she makes contact with her old spy masters. She wants to protect her family while also upholding her pro-Navasi ideals, but soon she’ll discover that she can’t do both—and that she might be about to be discovered.

If that sounds a lot then yeah, welcome to spy thrillers, but Darjani ensures it’s always complex but never confusing. What struck me first is how nicely the science fantasy and spy thriller mesh together. The concept of a magic underclass treated badly, and an allegedly idealistic leader who ends up using the government to curb their civil rights in the name of stopping terrorism, is an obvious but effective real life allegory. Another cool idea is that even the normal humans have minor magic powers, often ridiculously specific; my favorite being the person who always knows where the bathroom is (a devastatingly useful power, tbh).

But ultimately it was the spy part not the science fantasy part that stood out for me. Darjani was clearly inspired by a John le Carré spy thriller here, and one of the key motifs of a le Carré tome is the idea of a spy being trapped in multiple webs of betrayal. Tessa wants to protect her family while also stopping government overreach. The old spy theme of being torn in different directions and morally compromised is ruthlessly utilised here.

These themes work particularly well because of the character of Tessa, and how well Darjani writes her voice. On the one hand, she’s ruthless in her spycraft, manipulating people, constantly assessing the “pressure points” of everyone she meets. Like many of the spies in the le Carré canon, she’s addicted to the spy life, loving the dirty spycraft and the manipulation of it. But she’s also heartbroken as she can’t spend more time with her family, and desperate to protect them. And because Darjani writes her so well, we see vividly the pain it causes her. She’s also witty, self aware, and chaotic even as she’s also ruthlessly competent —which means it’s both a very funny book and a heartbreaking one as the true cost of her sacrifices for her family (or herself?) start to tell.

It’s also tremendous fun. At one point Tessa notes that spycraft is in many ways indistinguishable from magic, and this is a neat way of describing how fun it is to read her detailed descriptions of her spy routines and tactics. There’s a lot of old school spy stuff here—evading tails, secreting or extracting documents, paranoia about said tails—and when combined with the advanced planetary tech this is endlessly fascinating. I can’t wait for Book 2.

Overall, A Stellar Spy is a stunning achievement, a science fantasy spy thriller—space magic Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy but from the perspective of the mole—which combines utterly thrilling spycraft with a deeply emotional take on the personal sacrifices of a spy. If le Carré had written speculative fiction, it might have looked a lot like this.

[backy · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Note: I read an Advanced Copy of this unpublished book in exchange for a fair review.)

A Stellar Spy by Maya Darjani is a suspenseful, fast-paced spy thriller in a sci-fi wrapper. It's also a story about family, love, and loyalty. Except for one chapter, the story is told in present tense by the protagonist, Tessa Daevana—which is only one of her names, and personas. I think that was an appropriate choice for this story, although there are downsides—mainly that we learn a lot about Tessa because we know everything she thinks, but we learn much less about other characters. Fortunately, most main characters are Tessa's family members, associates, friends, or lovers, so we do get insight into their thoughts and feelings, through Tessa.

There's a lot to like in this imaginative novel set on multiple worlds that are part of a Human Consortium. Darjani's prose is richly detailed, insightful, sprinkled with dry humor, and often beautiful. There's gems such as, "The saints among us are the most dangerous sinners, because their sin is borne by good intention." The dialogue is natural, sharp, and witty. And through it all, Darjani makes Tessa, a self-described "terrible” person who's a mess of contradictions, a sympathetic character—no small feat. She often seems totally unsuited to her long-time vocation as a spy, yet she loves it—except when she hates it. But she's also a mother and former wife of a VIP—relationships that underlie much of her inner conflict. The other characters are diverse, with women well-represented in authority roles.

Just a few nits … There's quite a few errors, mostly punctuation but a few others also. I assume there will be another editing pass or two before publication in November, so I didn't factor those into my scoring. Darjani uses a staccato writing style, with lots of short sentence fragments. Overall it's effective in a stream-of-consciousness way, but it got a bit repetitive for me; it might be nice to mix in some punctuation other than periods once in a while for variety. And then, on these planets that are clearly not Earth, there's a lot of Earthlike things; for example, wallabies, breakfast burritos, jasmine, lilacs, coffee, teddy bears, agave, chocolate, bratwurst, sauerkraut, bacon, and kilograms. It raises the question, did the people on these planets (at least some of them) migrate from Earth at some point? (Earth isn't mentioned as being in the Consortium, and many characters are clearly not of Earth.). If not, how did these other worlds come to savor chocolate etc.? Maybe we'll find out in the sequel.

Nits aside, I greatly enjoyed this book and look forward to the continued adventures of stellar spy Tessa Daevana.

Note: this book is for Mature (18+) readers due to language and mature themes.

[Andrés da Silveira Stein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: The author was very kind and sent me an eCopy for review purposes. Unbiased and all that. You know the drill.

First, A Stellar Spy is one of those kinds of books where you enjoy the ride from start to finish. Our main character is likeable and acerbic at the same time, she has some irredeemable qualities that would normally make you dislike her. She’s manipulative and very VERY capable at that.

But once you start to peel off the layers, and there are many, MANY layers to her. As you’ll discover as you go along, you understand that said skill is not just a quality, but more of a natural part of her being.

She’s a Spy, a Double Agent, a Deep Cover Agent, and above it all, a mother. When all of that starts to crash and burn around her, she takes gambles, chances and she deep dives into all of her skills to avoid losing her most precious things, her children.

A Stellar Spy is a Spy thriller (duh…), but one where the spycraft is handled with knowledge, care and skill not to confuse and drown the reader with endless terms piled and thrown all together at you. Maya slowly works her magic to let you into the myriad nuances of what it takes to be a Spy.

On top of the spycraft, you get magic. Magic that is pervasive and omnipresent in daily life, just about everyone has a smidge of magic, in the entire universe, and said magic is central to the story. Where Tessa’s (our Main Character) husband, and the Premier of this planet they’re living in, is to make stupidly bad decisions regarding magic, because in humanity’s past there was some big shit that was ultimately blamed on powerful magic users.

On top of magic, you get sci-fi, nanotechnology, space travel, super-advanced disguise tech, etc.

But the most fun aspect of the book is that, neither the spycraft, the magic or the technology make this interesting. It’s Tessa’s humanity, her choices and decisions. It’s a human story about parts of the human condition and motherhood at the centre of that. But also loyalty, and love.

If you want a story with plenty of fun, swearing, technology magic, and a good dash of commentary, then I wholly recommend you to grab A Stellar Spy. I had a blast with it.

4.5⭐️

[Annette Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Stellar Spy by Maya Darjani is a fast paced espionage thriller with a sci fi twist along with a sprinkling of magic. and I enjoyed every twist and turn. Spy thrillers are not usually a go to genre for me but having read other books by this author and really enjoyed them I was keen to give it a shot, especially since I knew the author has a background in counterintelligence work that should add authenticity to the adventure.
The story is told from the perspective of Tessa, ex wife of Finn, who just happens to be leader of the planet, a man she shares two children with and still loves. What makes things a little more complicated is that she is also a deep undercover agent whose main role has been in observing and nudging decisions here and there, and the reason for her split from Finn was her affair with a colleague, a woman she must now take advantage of if she is to succeed in her new mission, a plan to stop Finn launching a bio weapon that would strip magic users of their powers permanently. If she is to save her home planet she will have to betray every one she loves on this one, is that too high of a price to pay?
I really found myself immersed in this book, reading the whole thing over the course of one afternoon. Tess is a complicated character, not always likable but never dull, and I found myself rooting for her and really feeling the struggles she was grappling with in both her personal and professional spheres. Several of the secondary characters added a humorous touch that I always appreciate and I thought the inclusion of Tess's children, Sage and Morgana was clever as it really upped the personal stakes for Tess. I was intrigued by the world and the magical system, and while I understand the need to gloss over some of the details in pursuit of the taut pace and sustained tension that a thriller demands, I do hope that we learn more in future books, which I know are not guaranteed but given the open ending and some details from the author's afterword, I am hopeful about there being more to come.
I read an ARC courtesy of the author, all opinions are my own.

[OldBird · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slick science fantasy, this book combines the complexities of espionage with the difficulties of being a loving wife and mom when life is hectic. It doesn't really get more hectic than when a mom/former sleeper agent discovers a major threat to the galaxy's magic users and has to try, somehow, to pick a side.

This is not in any way an easy book to pin down. It works the extraterrestrial world building swirled in with a generous helping of magic in a way that really lets the author flex her skills. It's a balance that is almost impossible to pull off, but here it's cleverly balanced with the "mundane" of a government spy-craft thriller in a setup that's very familiar. It even packs a punch in those less out of this world scenarios when our troubled agent Tessa has to deal with her own tortured emotions regarding the man she wasn't supposed to love or the children she was never supposed to have.

My only gripes would be that some characters don't get very fleshed out. Tessa's narration tells us about interactions, but we don't really see much of them to get an idea of how the characters relate; take her moments with Rayna, her past with certain mysterious people who vanish from the narrative, or how she becomes maybe more than just friends with someone along the way. I felt I was missing out on some of the development there.

I'd also say that I really think this shouldn't be a stand-alone. I couldn't help but feel we left on an ambiguous note, and wanted to know what was happening next. I truly hope there's a sequel in the works to give Tessa's story an ending.

Though one big magical plus: The main character is over 30 and is not totally defined by her kids.

Overall, a well paced novel that really digs in to both the espionage angle, with all its twisty betrayals and fear of capture, and makes a convincing science fantasy setting where tech and magic mix in an interesting, well described way.

[Dani · Rating 4 out of 5]

A spy novel, that takes place in space (on another planet) and has magic in it. Sounded like a unique mix and was what got me interested in the book to begin with.

We meet Tessa, who is still working for / with her Ex-Husband Finn while managing a demanding job and being there for their children. On Rulani people get *chipped* to be registered so they cannot misuse their magic unregulated. A subject not everyone agrees one Tessa and Finn are on opposite sides of the spectrum.

When an attack happens, the Premier wants to implement a project that would *take care* of the attackers by taking away the magic and control everyone’s life even more, which results in various arguments between her and Finn. Tessa does not agree with the actions of a view resulting in enforcing a limitation on everyone.

Tessa originally came to Rulani as a spy to infiltrate and ended up falling in love with Finn and having a family. The recent events make her go back to her original roots and she wants to stop Finn’s plan.
What I enjoyed most was Tessa trying to be a good mother while struggling with her role of being a spy. The overall story presented a well mixing political intrigue with personal drama.

What began as something novel, ended up becoming more about betrayal and a rather typical spy story around the middle of the book. While still interesting, it lost me a bit here. I also wanted to know more about her original planet, other planets and why we have such a *dilemma*. Hopefully, this will be covered in the future. Overall an interesting story, that had a bit of an identify crisis in the middle.


I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Sifa Poulton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an eARC through BookSirens in exchange for an honest review. It has not affected my opinions.

A STELLAR SPY is a great science fantasy thriller.

I think this is my favourite Maya Darjani book (to date). It's a spy thriller in a science fantasy world where a mother tries to balance her life as a senior political figure, a mother whose divorce has led to tensions with her children, and her identity as a supposedly ex-spy. It's a really engaging thriller as Tessa tries to keep her life from spinning out of control and having to decide where her loyalty lies.

If you like spy books that look more at tradecraft than cool gizmos and glamour, this is a good book to pick up. It goes into a lot of detail about shaking tails and the like, leading to (despite being set in space where people also have magic) it feeling more grounded than an over the top action movie.

I really liked that the main character is in her 40s. Most sci-fi and fantasy protagonists are on the younger side. There is so little that deals with parenthood and getting into your middle age. We need to show the full spectrum of lives lived, not just the young and unattached!

Unlike Maya Darjani's previous books, where the stories were part of series but felt very self contained, this very much feels like the start of a series. The story is not wrapped up by the end, but transitioning into a new environment, which I suspect is the launch pad for the next book. I don't mind series where the story continues and it will be interesting to see the author tackle this sort of series next.

[Ffiefvoley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really enjoyable read. Tessa is a former spy who was previously married to some high up galactic premier, but now divorced. She has two kids and they are her whole world though she struggles throughout this story with what it means to be a mother and a career woman. She finds out some explosive and alarming secrets involving her former husband and is thrown back into the thick of espionage in an attempt to save millions from a devastating biological weapon. Along the way we see her confront her own demons and terrible dangers.

Overall I really liked reading a book from the perspective of a mom, particularly a mom who is struggling to also be a high speed career woman. These are themes that resonate with many women today. I thought the action was good and the stakes were compelling.

A few nitpicks, at times it was a little too much navel-gazing on Tessa's part, she was just caught up in her problems and spinning things over and over again where it got a little repetitive. I historically have always had a hard time with first person books because I don't enjoy being stuck in one person's head for a whole book, so that's probably a me problem. There was also times where actions were just glossed over and summarized, not always immersive.

But those are overall small things and I suspect more related to me than the book itself. Overall, another fun read! Would highly recommend if you're into sci fi, this time with some magic thrown in, and spy thrillers.

[ChristianK · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll admit, at first I wasn't really into this. I am not a big spy thriller fan. Or so I thought. When things really get going and start escalating with very detailed descriptions of spy- and counterintelligence operations, it had its hook in me. And by the end, I would have immediately continued with the next book, if there was one. Maybe some day?

I didn't expect it at first, but now I would say this is my favourite book by Maya Darjani so far. And suddenly I am more excited for A Clockwork Spy next year. Maya knows how to make something like this exciting - without forgetting about the characters and their problems. The relationship between Tessa and her children probably was my favourite part of the story. What a complicated situation ...

I give this 4.5 stars, but will gladly round it up in this case.

[Tali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure what it was that didn't click for me about this book. The prose is good, the plot is good, the world building is good, and the characters are good and fun to read about. But there was something missing and I can't put my finger on it. Maybe it was just my mood, or maybe it's the fact that I'm in the middle of a series with similar themes (like being undercover) that made it hard for me to connect.

I don't think my experience reading it has anything to do with the author's skill, however I do think that because it felt like something was missing, it just made it feel average. Nothing stood out to me. I think this was just a good book that was the wrong fit for me.

[Kat M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the idea of a scifi spy thriller novel and this didn't disappoint as a concept nor as it was executed. I was hooked from the first page and had that tension and spy element that I wanted in this. The characters were so well written and I could picture them in my head, I was invested in their story and cared about what was happening. It was a strong entry in the Children of Gaia series and left me wanting to read more. Maya Darjani has a strong writing style and was glad I got to read this.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Paige D · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Stellar Spy is a gripping and emotionally rich science fiction novel that explores the collision between duty and love. Maya Darjani crafts a compelling narrative centered on a protagonist caught between two worlds, where every choice carries profound consequences. Blending suspense with heartfelt complexity, this is a standout read for fans of character-driven sci-fi and high-stakes storytelling.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story pulled me in surprisingly quickly. I wouldn't say it was "un-put-down-able" but it was definitely intriguing and had me wondering what would happen next. I took my time reading it and really enjoyed the story. I'm still not 100% sure what happened at the end but I expect a second book will be coming which will clear some of it up! I'm looking forward to that one.

[Katie Cirone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a bit of a slow burn for me. It took me until just after the halfway point to dive head first into the story. The pace really picked up and kept me turning the pages. Definitely left wanting more, can’t wait to see what comes next for Tessa!