http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/ en-US Copyright 2010 Sat, 10 Jul 2010 21:42:05 -0800 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification
If the author refuses to rescue us and wants to leave us in Tombstone, I am signing off. I will not author this blog any longer. I will take up writing about Captive At The Berghof instead, which is the third volume of my memoirs. At least that's more serious than all this western frivolity with Wyatt Earp and his gang and the shootout at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone in 1881.

If the author doesn't appreciate that I, a survivor of the Lusitania, deserve better along with Edward Ware who survived Gallipoli and his ride with Lawrence of Arabia across the Syrian Desert during the Great War, then we both quit. All the other characters in King Abdullah's Tomb resign, too, and refuse to appear on this page any longer.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley

P.S. See you at www.captiveattheberghof.com. Let's leave this silly author in Tombstone, Arizona all by herself. Let her deal with saloon keeprs and cowboys.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-signs-off-in-tombstone-an.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-signs-off-in-tombstone-an.html 1881 Arizoina Captive At The Berghof Colonel Lawrence Doira Benley mystery Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure First World War Gallipoli Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery O. K. Corral romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense Syrian Desert T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Wyatt Earp Sat, 10 Jul 2010 21:42:05 -0800
Tombstone is like a desert island. We have been marooned here against our will, and here we stay for who knows how long. It was not the hand of cruel fate but the hand of the author that put us here.

Like a desert island no one else knows we are here. Edward's regiment does not know that he is in Arizona. My parents' friends don't either. My father's business clients don't know that he has been hidden away here. Even the other passengers on the Lusitania don't realize that I'm out West. Neither do all those Bedouins that rode with Lawrence of Arabia and Edward Ware.

Also like a desert island we have to make do with what is on it. We can't send for caviar. We have to eat grits and Texas steak grilled over a fire with beans. And pretty soon when our clothes wear out, we will have to dress like a bunch of ranch hands.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I wasn't dressing like a ranch hand when I wrote volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-tombstone-is-like-a.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-tombstone-is-like-a.html Arizona Colonel Lawrence desert island Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery regiment romances romantic intringue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Fri, 09 Jul 2010 21:53:45 -0800
The Tombstone Rose is a monstrosity. I don't care if it has its own museum and own admission fee. It doesn't even look like a tea rose. Instead it resembles a huge tree. I mean, you can't even see the flowering part unless you climb up on a platform and take a picture.

The roses back in England were planted in neat beds and cared for by gardeners. This rose is allowed to grow rampant and is never pruned.

I wish I had taken this rose with me on the Lusitania. It might have scared away the saboteur who sank the ship. Edward could have used it at Gallipoli, too. It would have scared away those enemy Turks. Lawrence of Arabia could have considered it his secret weapon instead of blowing up railroad tracks.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. No Tombstone rose inspired me to write volume one of my  memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.



]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-the-tombstone-rose-i.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-the-tombstone-rose-i.html Arizona Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery England First World War Gallipoli gardeners Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence tea roses thriller Tombstone Tombstone Rose World War I Thu, 08 Jul 2010 22:15:51 -0800
We have lived in numerous exotic locales. Tombstone, Arizona is the most exotic by far. Since leaving Pittsburgh and sailing to England aboard the Lusitania in 1915, I have lived in foreign countries. First I stayed at Ware House in England to meet my new in-laws. I returned to England to visit Lady Ware before I went to Paris for the Peace Conference in 1919. In later novels I even lived in Egypt! Now that is exotic!

Edward, of course, lived in even more far off locations in the Syrian Desert when riding with Lawrence of Arabia. He even lived in a tent!

But Tombstone has a quality all its own. It might be in the United States, but it looks like the nineteenth century before automobiles that aren't allowed to drive on its streets. Visiting it and living here is like time travel back to the Old West.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I didn't engage in time travel when I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-we-have-lived-in-exo.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-we-have-lived-in-exo.html 1915 1919 Arizona Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery England First World War Great War historical fiction historical novels historical roimances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystsery Old West Paris Peace Conference Pittsburgh romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Wed, 07 Jul 2010 22:19:41 -0800
Since we can't get out of Tombstone, Arizona, we characters should build our Tombstone Estates. Edward will no longer live at Ware House. Instead he will live there. We will have a dance hall instead of a ballroom. We will have a saloon instead of a Great Hall with a long, wooden dining table. And instead of topiary gardens, we will have dusty acres covered by cactuses and yucca.

It is nothing I could have foreseen that day in May when I boarded the Lusitania and sailed to England with my parents. It was nothing Edward could have foreseen when he shipped off to Gallipoli and then rode with Lawrence of Arabia during the Great War.

Instead of a lawn I will have a signature barrel cactus.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I never knew what a  yucca plant was when I was wriitng volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-instead-of-ware-hous.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-instead-of-ware-hous.html Arizona barrel cactus Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Gallipoli Great Hall Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E Lawrence thriller Tombstone topiary gardens World War I yucca Tue, 06 Jul 2010 22:28:24 -0800
Tombstone, Arizona was once called Helldorado. It was a well-deserved reputation. Imagine a place out in the Arizona Desert in the middle of nowhere. The sun beats down on you. Then picture gunslingers leaping out at you from the nearest doorway and shooting. You have to run and hide. There is little cover. It is a good way to end up in Boothill Cemetery perched on a hill on the edge of town.

Arizona is hell even more so than sailing on the Lusitania. That took only one week. We characters have been trapped here for over a month with no prospect of being sent anywhere else soon. Edward says it is longer than most battles. Even the raids on Turkish railroads for which Lawrence of Arabia became famous during the Great War took only a day or two at most, sometimes only a few hours.

 The author doesn't consult us. She just writes. It is hell to be a character in a novel. You get told what to do all the time.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I was not stranded in Helldorado when I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.


]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-i-can-see-why-this-p.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-i-can-see-why-this-p.html Arizona Arizona Desert Boothill Cemetery Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Great War Helldorado historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lusitania Lwrence of Arabia mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller sujspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone Turks World War I Mon, 05 Jul 2010 23:06:51 -0800
What if I don't want to eat anymore at the Longhorn Restaurant in Tombstone, Arizona? What if I want to return to Benson to eat at the Apple Farms? After awhile you do get bored with cowboy steaks charbroiled over a fire. You long to have something normal like apple pie. It sounds more genteel.

I would go anywhere to get out of Tombstone whether it be the Grand Canyon, Hong Kong, or darkest Africa. I dream about it at night. I would even sail on the Lusitania again. Edward would be willing to go back to Gallipoli. Certainly he would rather ride with Lawrence of Arabia. It is a lot more fun than this dirty, cowpoke town in the middle of nowhere.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I didn't write volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb, in Tombstone.


]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-what-if-i-dont-want.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-what-if-i-dont-want.html Apple Farms Arizona Benson Colonel Lawrence darkest Africa Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Gallipoli Grand Canyon Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals Hong Kong intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Longhorn Restaurant Lusitania mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Sun, 04 Jul 2010 22:12:48 -0800
I'd like to challenge Helga to a gunfight at high noon on Toughnut Street. You're not supposed to know who that character is if you've read only King Abdullah's Tomb. She's only alluded to in a vague sort of way at the very end. But once you meet her in my later books you will hate her as much as I do. That I promise you.

She's worse than all the gunfighters and gangs that Wyatt Earp fought in Tombstone in 1881.She has tried to murder me several times. She doesn't do much for Edward either.

If you want to find out who this nemesis is, you will have to wait until the later volumes. She was not on the Lusitania. But she was in Arabia when Edward was riding with Lawrence.

Beware of the man trap!

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I wish I had never heard of Helga. It would have made writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb, a whole lot easier.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-id-like-to-challenge.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-id-like-to-challenge.html 1881 Arizona Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Great War gunfight gunfighters high noon historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intirgue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania man trap mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone Toughnut Street World War I Wyatt Earp Sat, 03 Jul 2010 22:27:13 -0800
Is it thunder or a bullet? I ask myself that question every day in Tombstone when I hear a loud bang outside my window. Right  now is the monsoon season, so it could very well be a thunderclap. But then there are so many horse thieves in town, so many outlaws, so many gamblers that I wonder if somebody is not having a gunfight at high noon out on the street. Maybe they are even re-enacting the O.K. Corral.

Edward scoffs and smiles at how womanish I am. He is surprised at me after being a survior of the Lusitania that I let such trivialities bother me. His nerves are made of steel. He became inured to shooting at Gallipoli. He mastered rifles and handguns himself when riding with Lawrence of Arabia.

Edward wouldn't care if he ran into Wyatt Earp himself!

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. There were no gunslingers outside my window when I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-is-it-thunder-or-a-b.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-is-it-thunder-or-a-b.html Arizona Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Gallipoli Great War historical fiction historical novels historical roimances historical series historical thrillers historicals intirgue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania monsoon mystery O.K. Corral roimantic thriller romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Fri, 02 Jul 2010 22:16:50 -0800
Edward could recruit a Tombstone, Arizona regiment. That is about the only redeeming quality of the place. All the cowhands, wranglers, cowboys, outlaws, gamblers, saloon keepers, and silver miners would make excellent soldier material. They certainly are accustomed to guns! They know how to ride and reconnoiter. It is second nature to navigate by the stars.

The denizens of Tombstone may be rough. But they are just what the army needs.They wouldln't have made very god passengers aboard the Lusitania, but they might have sufficed for recruits for Lawrence of Arabia.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I didn't talk about cowhands when I was composing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.



]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-edward-could-recruit.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/07/dora-says-edward-could-recruit.html Arizona Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery outlaws regiment romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:09:32 -0800
If I am going to live in Tombstone, I will have to build a castle. It will have to have a moat with crocodiles swimming around in it to fight off incursions by bad guys, train robbers, and no good gangs --- not to mention Apache Indians! That way I can bask on my sun deck near the turrets with my novel or magazine undisturbed by Wyatt Earp and his brothers.

Really, someone who is a veteran of the Lusitania shouldn't be mistreated in such a despicable fashion by the author! I deserve more respect for surviving all the trials and tribulations of the author's plot just as Edward Ware survived the Great War and the battlefields of Syria during the Arab Revolt under Lawrence of Arabia.

So I must not let the inhabitants of Tombstone cross the drawbridge into my refined British world with drawing rooms, lords and ladies, and English high tea. No, they can swill bear and hard liquor in their gambling halls and saloons instead, Hopefully our paths will not cross.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. While I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb, I should have designed the castle.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-if-i-am-going-to-liv.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-if-i-am-going-to-liv.html Apache Arab Revolt Arizona castles Colonel Lawrence Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery drawbridges First World War Great War high tea historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania moats mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense Syrian Desert T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War I Wyatt Earp Wed, 30 Jun 2010 22:42:29 -0800 Dear Readers,

I am going to buy Tombstone, Arizona. Why not? I can afford to buy almost anything I want. My father, Wintrhop Benley, will provide the cash. He is a tire magnate back East in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Not that Tombstone is my favorite kind of place, mind you. I want to buy it because it is not.

If I own the city, then I can tear down all the honky-tonk, western bric-a-brac. I will build decent houses and not saloons, gambling halls, and whore houses. The O.K. Corral must go. So must the Crystal Palace Saloon, and I think we can find a more proper name for Toughnut Street. We don't want to name it after a silver mine.

Maybe I will rename the Longhorn Restaurant the Lusitania. It will at least be reminiscent of something far more grand. And the boarding house will become the Lawrence Hotel, named after Lawrence of Arabia. Again it  will be far grander than anything the town can conceive.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I never thought to buy Tombstone when I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.
]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-i-am-going-to-buy-to.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-i-am-going-to-buy-to.html Arizoina Colonel Lawrence Crystal Palace Saloon Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Great War historical fiction historical novels historical roimances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Longhorn Restaurant Lusitania mystery O.K. Corral Pittsburgh romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone Toughnut Street World War I Tue, 29 Jun 2010 22:08:59 -0800
Somebody in Tombstone, Arizona painted Edward's black Daimler blue. We located it sitting outside the Crystal Palace Saloon where Wyatt Earp used to work back in 1881. Whether a gambler stole it or the saloon keeper or an outlaw or Wyatt Earp himself we have no idea. But why they painted it bright blue is even more mysterious. It looked distinguished and sophisticated painted black. It didn't need any garish coloring.

But then everything about Tombstone is garish from the boom town atmosphere to the silver strike mentality. it's the place for quick riches, not for aristocracy and refinement. There was far more of that on the Lusitania. I am about as far away from it here as Edward was when he joined Lawrence of Arabia and rode with Bedouins.

After the Great War everybody started to act different. But these citizens of Tombstone were doing it back in the 1880's.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. There were no mentions of the citizens of Tombstone in volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-somebody-painted-edw.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-somebody-painted-edw.html 1881 Arizona Bedouins Colonel Lawrence Crystal Palace Saloon Daimler Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspense romantic thriller suspoense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone World War i Wyatt Earp Mon, 28 Jun 2010 22:27:13 -0800
Edward's Daimler has been stolen by one of these Tombstone ruffians who strut around Allen Street and Toughnut street in their cowboy boots. They've never ridden anytihing besides a horse, and they see Edward's flashy car and cannot stand the temptation. It's better than silver and gold to gamblers, saloon keepers, can-can girls, and outlaws.

These western types have never fought at Gallipoli or under Lawrence of Arabia. They don't know what it means to be honest. They earn a living any way they can. They certainly don't remind me of the upper crusty passengers on the Lusitania.

I hope I see Edward's Daimler again but I doubt it. Not in Tombstone!

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
P.S. I never imagined Edward's Daimler would be stolen while I was writing volume one of my memoirs, King Abdullah's Tomb.

]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-edwards-daimler-has.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-edwards-daimler-has.html Allen Street Colonel Lawrence Daimler Dora Benley Dora Benley adventure Dora Benley mystery First World War Gallipoli Great War historical fiction historical novels historical romances historical series historical thrillers historicals intrigue King Abdullah's Tomb Lawrence Lawrence of Arabia Lusitania mystery romances romantic intrigue romantic suspoense romantic thriller suspense T. E. Lawrence thriller Tombstone Toughnut Street World War I Sun, 27 Jun 2010 22:12:23 -0800
They should serve high tea in Tombstone. It would make the afternoons go by more quickly to have crisp cucumber sandwiches and trays of savouries with hot tea and milk to look forward to. It would give you a reason to stroll down Allen Street or Toughnut Street and enter the Longhorn Restaurant. It would give you a reason to ignore all the hordes of tourists and the honky-tonk atmosphere.

After all, nothing really happened here. So what if there was a gunfight in 1881? Just think how many more guns were fired during the Great War! Edward saw far more fire power at Gallipoli and when he rode with Lawrence of Arabia. I daresay I saw more guns firing aboard the Lusitania when it was sinking and the saboteur tied Michael and I up in the engine room.

So, Tombstone, Arizona, give up your cans of Coke and your pizza joints. Savor the experience of tea at five o'clock in the afternoon.

Sincerely yours,

Dora Benley
]]> http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-they-should-serve-hi.html http://www.cheopsbooks.org/cheops_books_blog/2010/06/dora-says-they-should-serve-hi.html Sat, 26 Jun 2010 22:02:29 -0800