Overview

Planet of Love, the sequel to Love Beyond Orbit, is the fourth in the Brent and Edward series of future romantic science fiction by the creative author, Richard Jeffery Wagner. In this hard science fiction book, he details a near-future world where intercontinental rockets and sentient machines are commonplace. Edward Collier lives a carefully balanced life of comfort, intellect, and quiet longing. His loyal robotic valet, Brent, is more than a servant; he's a companion capable of deep curiosity and unsettling insight. As Edward returns from paradise and faces the ache of separation from his fiancée, his conversations with Brent turn inward toward questions of love, free will, and what it truly means to live. In the stillness of a high-tech world, thought itself becomes the final frontier.

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Reviews

Planet of Love may be ""hard science fiction,"" as author Richard Jeffery Wagner claims in his introduction, but it is far from a difficult read. Wagner's voice is infused throughout with clarity as well as a humor at once soothing and insightful. Through his words, we envision a 22nd century just beyond the horizon of our own. It is a future of air taxis, trysts on Mars, robots capable of independent thought. Wagner punctuates each chapter with quotes from sources as disparate as Einstein and Jane Austen, Socrates and Anthony Bourdain. Edward (a software engineer) and Brent (his robot valet) debate philosophical concepts on equal footing. But this intriguing short novel is, above all, a love story: between human and human, robot and robot. It will prove a warm and welcome read to all who follow Richard Jeffery Wagner's wise and gentle lead into a planet of love that is not Venus but our very own home. Harry Ringel, author of A Triumph of Shadows and The Hand Above the Lid In a world where rockets span continents and machines have evolved to think and feel, Edward Collier navigates a life of refined pleasure, intellectual pursuit, and unspoken yearning. His trusted robotic companion, Brent, is more than a mere servant - he's a confidant, a curious being capable of unnerving perception. As Edward returns from a tropical haven, the ache of separation from his fiancée lingers. His dialogues with Brent meander into profound introspection, probing the essence of love, autonomy, and existence. In this hyper-tech era, the human mind remains the ultimate unexplored territory. Blessing Amu, author of Autocracy in Democracy and Brightest Morning Dew

Author Information

Richard Jeffery Wagner has found that becoming a writer has helped him become a better reader. He was born in Carmel-by-the-Sea in California and grew up in Salinas, graduating from Salinas High School, the same high school that John Steinbeck attended. Dr. Wagner graduated with a BSME from the College of Engineering at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 1979. He earned his Ph.D. in computer science in 1997 from the University of Southern California, where he then taught computer science full time for two years before going back to industry full time. Dr. Wagner built spacecraft with the Northrop Grumman Corporation and managed the integration and test portion of the winning proposal for the James Webb Space Telescope before managing integration and test for Project Redwood. He has mentored students in competitive robotics for over 20 years. He retired in 2010 and now lives in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, in a modest house in a middle class neighborhood with his wife, Andrea, two cats, and several bonsai. He and Andrea are active volunteers in their community.Dr. Wagner began reading science fiction at the age of 12. He started publishing his own fiction with the novella The Zombie Philosopher (published in 2022). That was followed by the sequel and full length novel, Brent and Edward go to Mars (published in 2023). The third novel in the series, Love Beyond Orbit, was published in 2025 by Auctus Publishers. Dr. Wagner is a member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (and is on the Emerging Technologies Committee) and of the OLLI9 Writers Circle. His Erdős number is four.

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