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Reviewed by Asher Syed for Readers' Favorite
In Gary A. Keith’s The Mansions on Woodlawn Boulevard, Google executive Ted Jenkins decides that the grand homes lining his historic West Austin street deserve single-digit addresses that match their stature. His proposal draws the neighbors together, yet a routine look at old property records raises questions about deeds reaching back to the nineteenth-century Fenstemacher Estate, whose former plantation once covered much of the area. Real estate lawyer Clarence Mitchell becomes involved with an elderly client whose family has owned a nearby home for generations, while state cartographer Billye Keaton begins examining old maps connected to the same land. As vanished creek boundaries begin appearing in records that no longer match the modern neighborhood, the residents discover that changing a house number may require understanding who owned Woodlawn long before its mansions existed.
Gary A. Keith’s The Mansions on Woodlawn Boulevard is an immersive mystery with an instinct for why neighborhood history gets people interested. Once the past starts speaking, you want to hear the rest. Retired researcher Jeremy Lynn is an example of how well that idea works when he traces a soggy dip across his Victorian yard, then studies Sanborn maps until an old creek appears beneath modern Woodlawn. Every supporting character feels as individual as the scenes they inhabit; the standout for me, as a cat lover, is a retired Wall Street professional asking his elderly cat, Simon, for menu advice while perusing a cookbook for recipes. Austin itself has a wonderfully lived-in feel, whether it's through Dude’s balcony overlooking violet hills, or a livelier turn inside the Texas Capitol as Chaz Maverick relishes the proceedings. Readers drawn to mysteries rooted in local history are in for a real treat. Very highly recommended.
