Ghost Legion

Star of the Guardians #4

by Margaret Weis

Young Dion Starfire is the ruler of a galaxy that is finally at peace after years of strife and bloodshed. Yet the peace is an uneasy one. Dion has fallen desperately in love with a woman who is not his queen, and suddenly the fragile alliances that rest on his marriage are threatened. Then real violence erupts as an illegitimate son of the dead king, in hiding on a forgotten planet, plots Dion's overthrow. At his command is an army of unseen "ghosts"—alien presences that can roam the galaxy and kill at will. Dion must turn to an old mentor and enemy, Derek Sagan, as the one man who can help him battle the bastard prince and his dark minions. And at Derek's side hovers the powerful, shadowy presence of his lost love, Lady Maigrey. If Dion can only win their aid, he may have one last chance to preserve his throne—and peace for the galaxy.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Fiction, Space Opera, Science Fiction Fantasy, Collections, Space

546 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 1993

About the author

Margaret Edith Weis is an American fantasy and science fiction author of dozens of novels and short stories. At TSR, Inc., she teamed with Tracy Hickman to create the Dragonlance role-playing game (RPG) world. She is founding CEO and owner of Sovereign Press, Inc and Margaret Weis Productions, licensing several popular television and movie franchises to make RPG series in addition to their own.
In 1999, Pyramid magazine named Weis one of The Millennium's Most Influential Persons, saying she and Hickman are "basically responsible for the entire gaming fiction genre". In 2002, she was inducted into the Origins Hall of Fame in part for Dragonlance.

Reviews

[Zackery]

This fourth book was not needed. First 3 books were near perfection.

[Shana]

I liked this book, but not quite as much as I liked the other books in this series. I was not offended by anything in the book, but there are a few parts that might offend someone.

Dion finds out that he has an illegitimate cousin who wants the throne. With the help of some mysterious ghost-like creatures, this cousin is causing chaos and is a real threat to Dion. Meanwhile, Dion is struggling in his marriage.

This book had plenty of action, and I enjoyed reading more about several of the characters in this series again (especially Tusk and XJ). Overall, I found this book to be a satisfying read.

[Aaron Caskey]

A dire indictment on the naive boy I was at thirteen. However, I must forgive my younger self as Ghost Legion is so enticing for someone in their early teens, because it seems as if it was written by a thirteen year old. Hopelessly one dimensional characters concoct transparent schemes that are kept hidden from the reader in order to develop some sort of "suspense". This obfuscation of most of the main characters' thoughts takes away any weight that their actions may have, ultimately leaving Ghost Legion completely soulless.

[Greymalkin]

mostly I read this for Sagan and Maigrey. The rest I don't even remember.

[Divia]

This one is by far the best! It would have only been better if Maigrey was there as more than just a ghost. Still, she heavily influenced the ending.

For me, Derek and Maigrey have always been the best part of the story but I actually found the love triangle enjoyable. I wasn't initially happy with it because I thought it would be boring but it wasn't. The main reason that it wasn't awful was because of Astarte. Queen Astarte is my new favourite, along with Sagan in this book. She just wasn't the typical spurned lover or constantly yearning or pining away. Despite not being a warrior like other characters she got things done and showed herself to be quite resourceful and capable. She seems more mature than Dion. What I loved was how this book and Astarte herself pointed out a crucial point in several love triangles and arranged marriages. Dion never tried. He believed that he could and would never be happy because he loved Kamil and he could only love her. He built this unattainable fantasy in his mind about this affair and constantly believed that he doesn't mean to hurt anyone; how can he be wrong when it's true love! The reality is that you are married and if you're not willing to at least try in your marriage then get a divorce and deal with the issues that arise.

I think that Dion matured in this one. He really came into his own as a king. Dion and Astarte will rule well.

[Steven Bates]

For those that know Margaret Weis with Tracy Hickman from the epic Dragonlance series, you will no doubt know she is an amazing author with an eye for detail, a talent for weaving stories, and a skill for pulling you in and making you fall in love with every character of her stories. This series is no exception. Writing solo this time, Margaret Weis delves into fantasy and science fiction together in a way I have encountered from no other! Her characters are rich and involved, detailed and with great depth to every one, pulling the reader into loving a whole new universe with a entire new cast in such a way that I have found myself re-reading this series at least 4 times completely now, (and I will be reading it all over again within the year, they are that good!!). I am copying this review on the entire 4 book set to encourage everyone to try this series out. If you love space opera with suspense, fantasy with science fiction, and characters you'll cheer and cry for, respect and rail against, love and hate simultaneously, you'll fall in love with the Star of the Guardians series. Trust me on this one.

[James]

Young Dion Starfire is the ruler of a galaxy that is finally at peace after years of strife and bloodshed.  Yet the peace is an uneasy one.  Dion has fallen desperately in love with a woman who is not his queen, and suddenly the fragile alliances that rest of his marriage are threatened.  Then real violence erupts as an illegitimate son of the dead king, in hiding on a forgotten planet, plots Dion's overthrow.  At his command is an army of unseen "ghosts"--alien presences that can roam the galaxy and kill at will.  Dion must turn to an old mentor and enemy, Derek Sagan, as the one man who can help him battle the bastard prince and his dark minions.  And at Derek's side hovers the powerful, shadowy presence of his lost love, Lady Maigrey.  If Dion can only win their aid, he may have one last chance to preserve his throne--and peace for the galaxy.

[Martina Sanjaya]

Now this is more like the old Weis. The plot was completely thwarted any guess, so naturally flowing. I like Sagan even more, how he made minimum lies, mostly telling truth, but meant so different from what've been implied. So slick. My kind of guy :) I like how Raoul gained even more character here, but I do think most of the main characters was pathetic, even the antagonists Prince Flaim and Pantha. All in all, more satisfying ending. I'm grateful Weis wrote this later, cancelling the third book as closing.

[Felicity Fields]

It's been 20 years since I last read this book, and it's just as satisfying now as it was when I was 16. This book wraps up some loose ends at the end of the Star of the Guardians trilogy, and I like that they are wrapped up after Dion becomes King. I also found Derek Sagan to be just as interesting as I remember. A fun, engrossing read.

[Kenn Anderson]

Dion's life as king is not perfect. Forced to marry a woman he doesn't love is the least of it. Old friends are far and distant. A mistake from the past threatens to end the current monarchy. Ghosts of different types are a help or a hindrance.

A great book to read and end to the series. Well worth the time.

[Carolyn Redman]

Great work as always

And interesting and exciting way to end a terrific series. This is an author that never disappoints!
i will miss Dion, Derick and Maigray till I re-read the series again in a few years...

[Sam]

Weis' weaves an excellent story with complex characters. I am. looking forward to reading her other series.

[Stewart stanwood]

Ghost Legion series

Enjoyed this series greatly well defined characters and plot . Would recommend these books to anyone that enjoys a really good reading experence

[Holly Hopkins]

Star of the Guardians

An excellent ending to a wonderful series. This series grabbed me over 25 years ago, and is still one of my favorites.

[Leslie Munday]

More of the same Star Wars with gods and magicians. The story is predictable nonsense, but she is a good writer.

[Jay Kawasaki]

Incest, sister wives, blasphemy

[Jessica Mathes]

I love this series overall. This 4th book is not quite as good as the first 3, but it still has some really beautiful scenes! Dion shows a lot of growth in this book. He finally becomes a true king. I really like Astarte, although I sometimes have a hard time believing the way she is able to stay so calm through the adultery situation. I love Tusk and XJ as usual. Maigrey and Sagan are my favorites though! Always!

Here are my notes as I read. In my opinion the book gets better as it goes!

Ghost Legion
I have noticed inconsistencies in the story.
Pg. 110 said Garth Pantha “said goodbye to his wife and family” in his final transmission, but then on pg. 184 it said “he had no family, no settled home”

I noticed this issue in the earlier books as well, regarding the ages of Maigrey and Sagan, but it seemed a slight error. Things like this stand out a bit more. Should’ve been caught by editors!

I’m also super annoyed with Dion on pg. 222 when he blames Astarte for her mothers actions. First of all, HE is the one in the wrong! Second, he just learned that Astarte’s guards are loyal to her mother rather than to Astarte!

Now on 342 Xris is smoking in his room even though earlier he threw his “twists” away and said he was quitting (side note I wish there would’ve been some resolution with him and his wife!)

386 I’m so glad Dion is finally realizing what a jerk he’s been now

Oh my gosh when Maigrey appears to Dion! All I can do is cry!

Sagan and Maigrey at the end of his life! 😭😭😭

Dion’s recommendation for Kamil and the armor from Maigrey 😭

It’s all a very Christian ending. I personally am not religious, but I still love these books. I love that Maigrey and Sagan are together. And you know they will reach the light together eventually.

[Graham]

I read the Star of the Guardians trilogy for the first time when I was 17 years old - I had NO idea how much it subtly introduced new ideas into my life.

The book list that one of the main characters, Maigrey, works through in part of the book, is one of the reasons I went on to become a book reader myself - Weiss used Sci Fi to open my mind to the world of books out there!

To this day, Charles Dickens is one of my favourite authors... not because he was one of Maigrey's favourites, I've grown to appreciate him apart from that fact.

It's a sad story, all in all, with some strange theology and a world view that I no longer subscribe to. In fact, I'm not sure I'm going to recommend the series to my own kids some day, and I'm not even sure if it's worth a 4 star rating, to be honest, but the series is certainly one of those that shaped me as a kid, and those are always memorable, aren't they?!

[Rob Marney]

I am now old enough to properly appreciate this book. It's the trashy space opera version of Tehanu: a sequel to a trilogy that pulls back the camera and asks different questions. This time, it's about what you can or should sacrifice for duty, and what it means to be faithful to your wife or your love. The good parts of the series are all here - the sassy robot sidekick, the star-crossed lovers, the surprisingly modern focus on needing to look good to win the next election. The bad parts are also all here - the self-indulgent names and references, the side characters who are completely perfect or mustache-twirling evil, and Weis' habit of spoiling the mystery too early. This is a proper end to the series, that also kind of feels like a TV show that thought it would be cancelled last season.

Finally, I appreciate how most of the characters are in their 40s-50s and now have back pain and can't hold their liquor and all these little human touches.

[Robert]

When it wants to be good, it's good. When it wants to be action-packed, it's action-packed. When it wants to be preachy and Christian, it's boring and dull. Other than that, this book had a lot going for it as the conclusion of a series. A morally ambiguous villain whom you just can't hate, mysterious interdimensional forces (who sadly received the less-than-threatening name of 'the strange dark-matter creatures'), even the return of Lady Maigrey from beyond the grave. My only complaint is how much Christian God figured into the story; it made the characters less real, as if they were only actors in a play. Dion is king because God wants him to be. The space-rotation bomb is destroyed because God wants it to be. Maigrey is allowed to return because God wants it. It's very tiring to read. Other than that, a nice conclusion to an entertaining series.

[Ducky]

Oh my gods. Did that really just happen?

All I can say really. Read the series, fall in love, adore it! I'm still waiting on a sequel and prequel to this series about two specific characters, who you will discover as you read the books.

Dion... Poor deluded boy that he is, has grown to be a good King. Even after all his mistakes, he's still brilliant, not as hesitant to be who he needs to be, yet he is still... Human.

Enjoy!

[April Kendell]

I was a little disappointed with this last installment of the Star of the Guardian series. I was hoping for a spectacular ending, but was a little disappointed. The plot line sounded intriguing, but turned out to be rather slow and boring.

[Stephen]

This book was perhaps the best in the series, and it was only a novel tacked onto the end. Although it took some time for the story to get going, it had the most depth and suspense. By the time I was a third of the way through it I was hooked.

[Danielle]

I read this a good ten years ago, but I really enjoyed the entire series. Engrosssing characters.

[RogueHireling]

This book was great!

Lots of great story and variety of characters.

[LC Piper]

Read this in high school. May have been a bit over me, but I enjoyed it. A bit of profanity, but over all a great sci-fi read.

[G.M.]

One of my all time favorite book and one of my Top 5 Book Series!

So wish there was another book to this series!

[Jack Student]

Great book

other than the ending overall a great book... I have always enjoyed these books. I might get the ghost legion as well

[Jennifer]

I read this series back in high school or college and I remember enjoying it but most of the details are long gone.

[Steve]

Star of the Guardians