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The Travis Club
Taylor Nichols is a young writer who pens obscure historical guidebooks about his hometown, San Antonio, Texas. His books receive little notice until he unearths a 100 year old mystery that the powerful had hoped would never have been uncovered.
How far will the city's power brokers go to silence Taylor and his band of friend known as The Travis Club? Intrigue and romance bring this mystery alive in a one of a kind city, San Antonio.
How far will the city's power brokers go to silence Taylor and his band of friend known as The Travis Club? Intrigue and romance bring this mystery alive in a one of a kind city, San Antonio.
255 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
11 people are currently reading
1391 people want to read
About the author
Mark Louis Rybczyk
6 books56 followersThe Travis Club is Mark Louis Rybczyk's third book. His first, San Antonio Uncovered was a local best seller.
Many may know Mark as the longtime morning radio host, Hawkeye, of 96.3 KSCS in Dallas - Forth Worth. Mark and his his partner Terry Dorsey have the city's longest running FM morning show. They have won numerous awards including the Billboard Magazine's and the Academy of Country Music Air Personalities of the Year.
Mark is also host of "Travel With Hawkeye" a multi platform travel and entertainment company with features on radio, TV and podcasts. You can catch Mark weekly on the CW Network's Eye Opener program.
Many may know Mark as the longtime morning radio host, Hawkeye, of 96.3 KSCS in Dallas - Forth Worth. Mark and his his partner Terry Dorsey have the city's longest running FM morning show. They have won numerous awards including the Billboard Magazine's and the Academy of Country Music Air Personalities of the Year.
Mark is also host of "Travel With Hawkeye" a multi platform travel and entertainment company with features on radio, TV and podcasts. You can catch Mark weekly on the CW Network's Eye Opener program.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
October 4, 2015
If there is a literary equivalent of locavore--maybe "localit"?-- that would be a good way to describe this self-published mystery novel set in San Antonio, Texas. The plot revolves around a local historian and his ragtag group of friends as they try to stop a ruthless developer from paving over landmark buildings. While some readers might find this mystery a bit tame and the local references a bit esoteric, as someone who grew up in Central Texas, got a degree from Trinity University (like the hero and his friends), and has fond memories of the old Butter Krust Bread billboards that appeared to peel slices from a giant painted loaf, I quite enjoyed it. (I was even willing to overlook a little snubbing of my hometown, Austin.) The Travis Club may not win any literary prizes, but it was obviously written with passion and care and the quality is comparable to many mysteries from big publishing houses.
November 21, 2018
Fun read with surprising ending
Set in San Antonio, Texas this is a clever novel that will make you want to plan a road trip. Captures the flavor and people with historical facts woven into the story. Look forward to reading more from this author.
Set in San Antonio, Texas this is a clever novel that will make you want to plan a road trip. Captures the flavor and people with historical facts woven into the story. Look forward to reading more from this author.
November 19, 2024
A history and mystery buff's delight. I found the story intriguing and the characters interesting and fun.
November 23, 2013
Not expecting a book that would be my genre, I was completely surprised when I couldn't put this book down and really wanted to know what would happen next! Normally I read very predictable books (chick lit :p ), but this time I loved the fact that I didn't know how it would all end. This story was really exciting, build up good and provided us with characters you really get to know along the way. Author Mark Louis Rybczyk was able to arouse my interest for a topic I didn't know a thing about. Writing about old buildings and "lost" treasures that need to be preserved for the future, he striked a chord. As I try to preserve old things every day (teaching dead languages), I liked this subject a lot!
While reading this book, I had the feeling I became a member of the Travis Club. A club of men who try to keep "alive" the old buildings with history in town. They are confronted with rich developers who want to buy everything and turn it into modern buildings. Their base of operations is San Antonio and to their dismay developer and rich man Noel Black is buying a lot of buildings with a beautiful history to knock them down for his big profitable projects. This mr. Black turns out to be one of the biggest enemies the Travis Club has ever had. At the same time he will be the one leading them to their biggest discovery ever. A discovery that changes the lives of all our characters.
Talking about the characters... Our main character in "The Travis Club" is young writer Taylor Nichols. It's not like he's one of the most successful writers in town writing books about historical buildings and the local water reservoir, but because of his 10 book deal he's able to be fulltime writer. Taylor is happy with the simple things in life. His big idol is architect Randall Hugley about whom he also wrote a biography. The most important persons in Taylors life are his friends from the Travis Club. None of them is the most successful or is building a big career but they have one more (important) thing in common. They all love history and they all do whatever they can to save it from destroyers.
What I liked most about Taylor is his enthusiasm. The author is able to let this enthusiasm beam over to us, readers. In his big search you feel along with him and you want to help him digging through big dusty books to find what he's after. It's really easy to get excited about the Travis Club projects. One moment I really got carried away and read 3/4 of this book in a few hours. That's always a good sign!
I have to admit that sometimes the long descriptions in the book about water reservoirs and all that kind of stuff got a little boring. Luckily this was only SOMETIMES the case. The rest of the book was great and it deserves some credit! Even if you're not into this genre or subject... just try it out!
While reading this book, I had the feeling I became a member of the Travis Club. A club of men who try to keep "alive" the old buildings with history in town. They are confronted with rich developers who want to buy everything and turn it into modern buildings. Their base of operations is San Antonio and to their dismay developer and rich man Noel Black is buying a lot of buildings with a beautiful history to knock them down for his big profitable projects. This mr. Black turns out to be one of the biggest enemies the Travis Club has ever had. At the same time he will be the one leading them to their biggest discovery ever. A discovery that changes the lives of all our characters.
Talking about the characters... Our main character in "The Travis Club" is young writer Taylor Nichols. It's not like he's one of the most successful writers in town writing books about historical buildings and the local water reservoir, but because of his 10 book deal he's able to be fulltime writer. Taylor is happy with the simple things in life. His big idol is architect Randall Hugley about whom he also wrote a biography. The most important persons in Taylors life are his friends from the Travis Club. None of them is the most successful or is building a big career but they have one more (important) thing in common. They all love history and they all do whatever they can to save it from destroyers.
What I liked most about Taylor is his enthusiasm. The author is able to let this enthusiasm beam over to us, readers. In his big search you feel along with him and you want to help him digging through big dusty books to find what he's after. It's really easy to get excited about the Travis Club projects. One moment I really got carried away and read 3/4 of this book in a few hours. That's always a good sign!
I have to admit that sometimes the long descriptions in the book about water reservoirs and all that kind of stuff got a little boring. Luckily this was only SOMETIMES the case. The rest of the book was great and it deserves some credit! Even if you're not into this genre or subject... just try it out!
January 20, 2014
(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).
(This review may contain spoilers).
This was a book I found to be a really quick read. It was interesting, with well-written characters and a mystery that kept me reading through to the last page.
The concept of the club was a pretty cool one. I liked how the police were in on the club's activities, too. Unfortunately, there are people in reality who don't care about preserving history and are prepared to do whatever it takes to make themselves more money.
I liked the characters in the book and the way that they each had their own personalities - though I did keep getting mixed up about who was who. I liked the fact that Taylor talked about doing what people loved, as opposed to just doing what they felt they had to. (The whole 'work to live, not live to work' thing).
The mystery was quite compelling, but the book was a bit tamer than I'd expected. It wasn't until the end that I felt the characters were in any real danger.
The writing in the book was mostly good, though I did notice some minor errors. This was a fairly good book, able to surprise me in parts and make me smile in others. I would be interested in reading more books by this author in the future.
(This review may contain spoilers).
This was a book I found to be a really quick read. It was interesting, with well-written characters and a mystery that kept me reading through to the last page.
The concept of the club was a pretty cool one. I liked how the police were in on the club's activities, too. Unfortunately, there are people in reality who don't care about preserving history and are prepared to do whatever it takes to make themselves more money.
I liked the characters in the book and the way that they each had their own personalities - though I did keep getting mixed up about who was who. I liked the fact that Taylor talked about doing what people loved, as opposed to just doing what they felt they had to. (The whole 'work to live, not live to work' thing).
The mystery was quite compelling, but the book was a bit tamer than I'd expected. It wasn't until the end that I felt the characters were in any real danger.
The writing in the book was mostly good, though I did notice some minor errors. This was a fairly good book, able to surprise me in parts and make me smile in others. I would be interested in reading more books by this author in the future.
July 18, 2013
With all the free books available on my Kindle, I rarely spend money on books anymore... maybe once a year and for authors I already know and love. This was a risk as I've never read any of Rybczyk's books before and this was his first attempt at fiction. I'm very pleased I took the risk!
I heard the book was similar to Dan Brown's books but took place in Texas. It was even better than Brown's series. Taylor is a well-developed character, one that I feel I could be friends with if he were real. All of the members of the Travis Club felt that way. They were all fully written and seemed like just fun, friendly people. Like so many other reviewers, I can't wait to catch up with the Travis Club again.
I'll be honest and say I, too, have listened to "Hawkeye" on the radio for years. That affected my decision to buy the book but not my opinion of the writing. His knowledge and love of architecture and history is evident in his writing. This is passed on to the reader. I'm ready to visit San Antonio again and see all the sights with new insight.
I heard the book was similar to Dan Brown's books but took place in Texas. It was even better than Brown's series. Taylor is a well-developed character, one that I feel I could be friends with if he were real. All of the members of the Travis Club felt that way. They were all fully written and seemed like just fun, friendly people. Like so many other reviewers, I can't wait to catch up with the Travis Club again.
I'll be honest and say I, too, have listened to "Hawkeye" on the radio for years. That affected my decision to buy the book but not my opinion of the writing. His knowledge and love of architecture and history is evident in his writing. This is passed on to the reader. I'm ready to visit San Antonio again and see all the sights with new insight.
October 28, 2013
Taylor Nichols and his buddies aren't the most ambitious people around, but they do make a difference. They are The Travis Club. Living in San Antonio, Texas and loving the history of the city, Taylor begins to write books about the history of San Antonio. He believes he's ready to move on to his next book when issues arise with his last one. While trying to settle the dust on a couple of issues, more questions keep popping up and everyone is looking to Taylor for the answers. Does he have them?
If you love history as much as I do, this book will be right up your alley. Mr. Rybczyk does a wonderful job of incorporating the historical information with the story. I like that he patterned Taylor Nichols after himself. *smile* The story in this book is a mystery you'll enjoy unraveling.
I did find one issue. Sorry Mr. R! There were several spots where seemingly whole pieces of text were repeated.
I gave this one 4 cheers out of 5 because of the repetitive pieces. ~Copy of book provided by author in exchange for a fair review~
If you love history as much as I do, this book will be right up your alley. Mr. Rybczyk does a wonderful job of incorporating the historical information with the story. I like that he patterned Taylor Nichols after himself. *smile* The story in this book is a mystery you'll enjoy unraveling.
I did find one issue. Sorry Mr. R! There were several spots where seemingly whole pieces of text were repeated.
I gave this one 4 cheers out of 5 because of the repetitive pieces. ~Copy of book provided by author in exchange for a fair review~
October 17, 2013
Taylor Nichols unearths historical trivia and secrets regarding San Antonio, shares them on his radio show, and writes about them in books that have, until now, received little attention. But when he writes about the mystery of Davy Crockett's tomb, Taylor receives more attention than he bargained for.
Peppered with historical trivia, this debut mystery novel will appeal to fans of The DaVinci Code, historical mysteries, and conspiracy thrillers.
3 stars
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Virtual Book Tour Café book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Peppered with historical trivia, this debut mystery novel will appeal to fans of The DaVinci Code, historical mysteries, and conspiracy thrillers.
3 stars
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Virtual Book Tour Café book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
March 6, 2015
Taylor Nichols (the main character) is a writer who writes books about San Antonio – and its history. He is a member of a group called The Travis Club, whose sole purpose is to save historical buildings from being destroyed. In doing this, he often is in conflict with developers. This book is a little of everything – history, romance, mystery, as well as some lighter comedy spots. I found that I really enjoyed the entire book. At times, it seemed that there were several different plots happening – but they all came together in a way that made sense at the end.
As a lover of history, I was hooked on this book from the beginning. I, too, hate to see old buildings torn down to make room for parking lots – so I related to the main characters in the story. I read the book while visiting San Antonio, which only made me enjoy it more. I won this book from Goodreads in return for an honest review.
As a lover of history, I was hooked on this book from the beginning. I, too, hate to see old buildings torn down to make room for parking lots – so I related to the main characters in the story. I read the book while visiting San Antonio, which only made me enjoy it more. I won this book from Goodreads in return for an honest review.
February 3, 2014
(reviewer's note: GoodReads locked me out of my first account, so this review is the same one I had on my old account. I'm trying to get that account deleted so there are not multiple reviews from me. Thanks!)
I seriously couldn't put this book down- in fact, I stayed up until 2am reading because I HAD to see how it ended. Everything in this novel works- the characters, the plot, and the writing style. The author does a great job of making the characters seem real and believable. I love the historical facts that he includes-even readers with no interest in San Antonio will enjoy this part of the story. I hope that the author will write another novel using these characters, I feel they have more stories to tell. Great job!! I read the paperback version, but it's also available in e-reader form.
I seriously couldn't put this book down- in fact, I stayed up until 2am reading because I HAD to see how it ended. Everything in this novel works- the characters, the plot, and the writing style. The author does a great job of making the characters seem real and believable. I love the historical facts that he includes-even readers with no interest in San Antonio will enjoy this part of the story. I hope that the author will write another novel using these characters, I feel they have more stories to tell. Great job!! I read the paperback version, but it's also available in e-reader form.
May 1, 2015
Goodreads Signed Copy
This is about Travis Nichols who writes travel books and his gang of cohorts. He does not make a lot of money as he does a side job as a DJ at a radio station until he is fired due to his extra activities like chain himself on someone’s property with his friends.
One of his books meets a little attention when a 100 year old mystery is uncovered but the city would like to keep it quiet. How far will they go to keep it a secret as he is followed?
The Travis Club has a little bit of everything as it takes you on an adventure. A little potential romance, a mysterious secret and finding out that someone you thought dead is alive. Fast paced read that keeps moving along.
This is about Travis Nichols who writes travel books and his gang of cohorts. He does not make a lot of money as he does a side job as a DJ at a radio station until he is fired due to his extra activities like chain himself on someone’s property with his friends.
One of his books meets a little attention when a 100 year old mystery is uncovered but the city would like to keep it quiet. How far will they go to keep it a secret as he is followed?
The Travis Club has a little bit of everything as it takes you on an adventure. A little potential romance, a mysterious secret and finding out that someone you thought dead is alive. Fast paced read that keeps moving along.
August 3, 2013
"The Travis Club" by Mark Louis Rybczyk is a very entertaining read.
In the middle of their date Taylor joins his activists friends who try to stop a corrupt industrialist.
Then there is the mystery about a catacomb find in a local cathedral, media interest, church and administrative politics plus some very memorable characters.
This is a light-hearted and pleasant read, one that will probably be even better for those who know the area and locations.
In the middle of their date Taylor joins his activists friends who try to stop a corrupt industrialist.
Then there is the mystery about a catacomb find in a local cathedral, media interest, church and administrative politics plus some very memorable characters.
This is a light-hearted and pleasant read, one that will probably be even better for those who know the area and locations.
July 18, 2013
This is a great read... A gripping thriller woven in the historical thread of San Antonio, Texas. Rybczyk has a real flair for developing characters that you feel like could be your next door neighbors! I came to know and like the members of The Travis Club. To me, his style could best be described as a more intimate Dan Brown. Real and enveloping. I hope he works this into a series!
September 20, 2013
First, I would like to thank the author Mark Louis Rybczyk for giving me this book for an honest review. I really enjoyed this mystery. The Travis club is a good book, and Travis is very believable and well developed,the members of the Travis Club were likable as well. I look forward to reading more from this author, he as done a great job.
September 5, 2014
Found to be a most interesting mystery because of way author was able to weave history into intrigue of story. Anyone looking for a good well done mystery should be delighted to read. Have recommended to several friends who were captivated by story line. Received as winner at Goodreads which did not influence my review.
May 1, 2014
O
obviously the cityi of San Antonio is the main character of this novel. It reminds Texans why they love the city. The writing style is engaging. One really cares about the main character. The book relies heavily on coincidence. The author has researched his subject very well.
obviously the cityi of San Antonio is the main character of this novel. It reminds Texans why they love the city. The writing style is engaging. One really cares about the main character. The book relies heavily on coincidence. The author has researched his subject very well.
December 26, 2014
The Travis Club
Mark, affectionately known to Dallas radio listeners as Hawkeye, has captured a very interesting tale with a lot of San Antonio charm. Definitely an entertaining read.
Mark, affectionately known to Dallas radio listeners as Hawkeye, has captured a very interesting tale with a lot of San Antonio charm. Definitely an entertaining read.
September 5, 2015
Very interesting story about San Antonio.
The story captured me from the start. Taylor made a good author for the storyline. He came off as real writer. This book is full of interesting tidbits. I thought it was very hippopotamus
The story captured me from the start. Taylor made a good author for the storyline. He came off as real writer. This book is full of interesting tidbits. I thought it was very hippopotamus
August 2, 2016
If you love Texas history (as you should) you will love this fictional account of the real life mysteries buried in the past and below the streets of of modern San Antonio.
Mark Louis Rybczyk weaves a suspenseful tale of easy-going, very likable characters.
I highly recommend it.
Mark Louis Rybczyk weaves a suspenseful tale of easy-going, very likable characters.
I highly recommend it.
October 16, 2016
Having grown up and lived in San Antonio most of my life, I had to keep reminding myself that this is a work of fiction and not based on facts. It is merely using the history and locale as part of the story. Once I did so, it was an enjoyable read with fun characters.
July 18, 2013
Great read written by one of the greatest people I know!
September 6, 2013
Great characters, great Texas legends, thrilling and full of suspense. A great Texas book by a wonderful Texas author.
August 31, 2015
Loved it, mystery and history all woven around a devious tale - I highly recommend it
March 10, 2014
Interesting to me as I've been to San Antonio. Second half picks up speed.. Get to hear author speak next week.
March 16, 2015
Liked the San Antonio history as part of the story line. Characters and plot kept my interest. Read for my book club. Makes me want to read his nonfiction book...San Antonio Uncovered.
May 25, 2015
A story set in San Antonio, Texas. Whatever happened to the defenders of the Alamo? This book suggests where their tomb lies.
July 5, 2015
Loved this book!
January 6, 2014
Good book, makes me want to go to San Antonio again. I will probably re-read this one.
May 17, 2015
Fun fast read. Gives a good sense of San Antonio. Well Written.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews