Book Review: Foundation of Love by Scotty Cade and Z.B. Marshall

Title: Foundation of Love
Series: Love, Book 4
Author: Scotty Cade, Z.B. Marshall
Genre: Contemporary Romance, M/M Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy from publisher
Published: December 2011 by Dreamspinner Press

Years ago, Wes Stanhope fled his hometown of Charleston to escape the constraints of society and his controlling father, Colonel Robert Lee Stanhope IV. After completing medical school and building a successful practice in pediatric oncology in Seattle, Wes is called home for his mother’s funeral and presented with an opportunity to build and run a children’s hospital—his mother’s legacy—a choice he ultimately makes despite his misgivings about his father’s role as chairman of the hospital’s board of directors.

When Wes begins to build his team, he is introduced to a young, handsome black architect named Tyler Williams. Sparks begin to fly between the two men, and although Wes doesn’t identify as gay, denying his attraction to Ty becomes impossible. But Ty won’t be a dirty secret: if Wes wants to build a relationship, he’ll have to come out, brave his father’s racism and homophobia, and risk his chance to continue as the hospital’s CEO and realize his mother’s dream.

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Enjoyable MM romance with good leads and a nice plot.

The Set Up: Wes Stanhope left Charleston to establish a pediatric oncology practice in Seattle to get away from his controlling father and Southern expectations. When his mother dies she leaves him the plans for a new children’s hospital with Wes as the CEO. Wes meets architect Ty when he starts building the hospital and suddenly Wes knows why he hasn’t fallen in love before. But Ty won’t be Wes’s dirty secret and Wes doesn’t know if he can risk his mother’s dream of the children’s hospital he’s building.

Why I Read this Book: I’ve enjoyed this series greatly and will continue it.

What I Liked: The best thing about Cade’s books, and it holds true here, is that the men are honest with each other. Wes and Ty don’t have any big misunderstandings or feelings they refuse to share. Instead, the romantic tension comes from how these two men will make a relationship work with all these obstacles in their way. I enjoyed this romance as Wes and Ty communicate in and out of bed with a maturity and openness that isn’t the norm in romance.

I have to also say how much I enjoyed the low-key interracial component to the romance. That Wes and Ty are a biracial couple is mentioned but it isn’t a huge hang up nor was it a sticking point for either man and I liked this, especially since the primary setting was deep South.

What I Also Liked: The secondary characters are good here with Brad and Mac, leads from stellar book one in the series, returning for a bit. I love the glimpses into their life and relationship together and they continue to be my favorite series couple. I also was pleasantly surprised with Alicia, Wes’s childhood friend who is in love with him. I was worried that she’d be the classic stereotype in MM romance but she was more nuanced than that and her characterization elevated the quality of the book for me.

The plot involving the hospital being built is interesting and provides the backbone for Ty and Wes’s relationship. Wes’s relationship with his controlling father is tied into the hospital construction and it was important for that reason too. The epilogue was super sweet and wrapped up this very good novel well.

What I Didn’t Like: Again, this is romance so I shouldn’t nitpick, but all the men in this series are super rich, super successful and this is true for Wes and Ty as well. They buy each other expensive art and Cartier cufflinks and drink chilled Dom Perignon out of cut crystal. The feminist in me harrumphs that a relationship with two men will always have more earning power than a relationship with a woman who statistically makes less than her male counterpart. Still, this glitzy lifestyle isn’t enough to ruin the book, just something that bugs me a bit. This hater’s gonna hate, I guess!

IMO: Other than book one in the series, this is my next favorite. I loved Wes’s exploration of his sexuality and Ty’s compassion but refusal to settle. I enjoyed this book and recommend it and the entire series to MM readers.

J9’s Rating:
4 Frogs