Thank you to talented writer, Freya Pickard, for sharing this wonderful interview about my art, writing and other artistic endeavors.
Roberta Writes – Book review: A Peril in Unseen Frequencies by Teagan Riordain Geneviene
What Amazon says
All-human written. In this paranormal novelette, elderly and rich widow Etha Yates is diagnosed with a heart condition. Her doctor warns that any sudden shock or excitement could kill her — and that she needs a diversion. Her attentive nephew, Donald, who lives with her, gets her to install a new crystal set radio to keep her entertained.
.
Soon, Etha is shocked to hear a voice cutting through the broadcast. The voice claims to be her late husband, Chester. The ghostly voice warns her that soon he will come for her. Terrified but determined, Etha proceeds accordingly.
My review
This fourth novella in the A Medium’s Peril series is a little different from the previous books. Medium, Daphne Moultrie, is on the peripheral of this story and her gifted assistant, Cover Flanagan, is the star of this tale and also the narrator.
Elderly widow, Etha Yates, is diagnosed with a heart condition by her doctor. She must not get overexcited or over exert herself. Etha decides to employ Cover on a short-term basis to assist her with various tasks. Clover’s assistance is over and above that of Etha’s amiable young nephew, Donald, who is living with her and is a kind and caring companion. Etha is very fond of him so when Donald suggests she gets a ‘newfangled’ crystal set radio for entertainment, after some protests, she agrees. Etha finds herself enjoying the radio and looking forward to some of the programmes but the radio has a darker aspect, it is a channel through which her late husband can contact her. Etha turns to Clover to guidance. It was nice that Clover took a larger role in this story and stepped up with some enterprising ideas to protect Etha’s health in the strange circumstances.
Teagan Geneviene has a most entertaining and engaging writing style which draws the reader right into the tale and endears the characters quickly. I liked the character of Etha very much and appreciated her quirks and her devotion to her late husband’s memory. I also enjoyed that the condescending attitudes of her doctor and her young nephew annoyed her. Thank goodness for people like Etha who subtly led the way for gender equality.
This is a fast paced and exciting novella that I read in 90 minutes. It was an enjoyable read and I rather regretted finishing the story in one sitting.
Purchase A Peril in Unseen Frequencies by Teagan Riordain Geneviene here: https://www.amazon.com/Peril-Unseen-Frequencies-Mediums-Book-ebook/dp/B0HKPZ7TH4/
Find out more about this book
Teagan recently featured on Teri Polen’s Bad Moon Rising series. This is one of the answer’s to Teri’s fab questions:
Ghosts: believe or don’t?
I feel like such a hypocrite — I firmly believe in ghosts. Yet I’m often a skeptic whenever someone else talks about their experiences. Clover Flanagan, who narrates “A Peril in Unseen Frequencies” certainly is a believer in ghosts. Although she’s still rather new to her paranormal gifts and sometimes doubts what she’s seeing. The spirits come anyway though.
You can read the rest of Teagan’s great interview here: https://teripolen.com/2026/10/08/badmoonrising-a-peril-in-unseen-frequencies-by-teagan-riordain-geneviene-paranormal-medium-giveaway/
Make sure to visit this link and leave a comment for a chance to win a complete e-book set of A Medium’s Peril (US only)!
About Teagan Riordain Geneviene
Driven to create wondrous worlds, despite horrors of the past, Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene is certain that
“The pen is in your hand.”
After a life shaped by the tragedy of losing a sibling to Mµnchaµsen §yndr◊me by Pr◊xy, along with the abµ§e she herself survived, Teagan took that metaphorical pen into her hand. She wrote her way to a new chapter of life with a successful career authoring and editing technical documentation. With another revision that pen took her to the next chapter, working alongside highly placed Federal executives to compose their communications. However, Teagan wasn’t finished. The pen was still in her hand. In her latest chapter she is an acclaimed multi-genre author, living in a high desert town in the Southwest of the USA. Rescue cats, the §coobies — Velma and Daphne, offer unsolicited advice on all stories, as well as the book covers Teagan designs.
This author’s stories range from paranormal to high fantasy and urban fantasy, to various steampunk (and other types of punk), to mysteries with historic settings. In addition to fiction, she has created the Author Tool Chest series of non-fiction works as resources for writers and anyone who loves language. In free time she enjoys conversations with friends, singing karaoke, and playing her piano.
See her book trailer videos at Youtube.
Find Teagan on her blog here: https://teagansbooks.com/2026/10/10/am-writing-and-bad-moon-rising-a-peril-in-unseen-frequencies/
Find all of Teagan’s books on Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Teagan-Riordain-Geneviene/author/B00HHDXHVM
Roberta Writes – d’Verse and Sunday Stills
Lillian is hosting d’Verse Poetics Tuesday. You can join in here: https://dversepoets.com/2026/10/06/introducing-an-eight-year-old-artist/
What is support? (freestyle poem)
What is support?
Is it imposing your view
on what constitutes
appropriate subject choices
at school and even college?
Is it deciding on suitable
extra curricular activities
that lead towards achievement
of your idea
of appropriate life goals?
Is it forcefully manipulating
your child’s career decisions
citing financial success
as the only criteria?
Is support achieving
your own aspirations
through your child?
***
What is unconditional love?
Is it guiding your child
towards the safe option?
Wrapping him in cotton wool
keeping him protected
from all of life’s knocks?
Is it ensuring
he doesn’t make your mistakes
or any of his own either?
Is unconditional love
letting him go?
Allowing him the freedom
to make his own choices
learn from his own experiences
rise with the highs and
plunge with the lows?
Is unconditional love
providing the tools
for him to build his own life
and live it
the way he chooses to?
Sunday Stills
Hugh is standing in for Terri while she is abroad on vacation. Hugh’s theme for this week is ephemeral. You can join in here: https://hughsviewsandnews.com/2026/10/04/sunday-stills-photo-challenge-capturing-ephemeral-moments/
The four photographs in the gallery below are animal shots taken at sunset in two different game reserves in South Africa.
The photographs below are some of my favourite animal and other captures during the day time.
Roberta Writes – d’Verse, Thursday Doors and The Flower Hour
Sanaa’s prompt is ‘Through the eyes of John Atkinson Grimshaw’. You can join in here: https://dversepoets.com/2026/09/29/poetics-through-the-eyes-of-john-atkinson-grimshaw/
Watercolour city
new-to-me city
shimmering and dancing
under its mantle
of soft cloud and rain
droplets run
water condenses
on taxi window
excitement thrums
to the gentle rhythm
of pattering ran
outside colours
mix and run
on the filmed canvas
of the busy street
mystery and delight
captured in
swirls and swishes
of patternless blurs
on which golden splashes
of enchanting light
beckon comfortingly
Thursday Doors
Below are some doors from inside the Louvre in Paris.
You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2026/10/01/armenian-room-happy-birthday-cathy/
The Flower Hour
For Terri’s The Flower Hour, I am sharing the first yellow rose of the season. You can join in The Flower Hour here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2026/09/29/the-flower-hour-50-the-floral-abcs-exploring-w-xy-and-z/
Roberta Writes – Tanka Tuesday and CFFC
This is my poem for Willow’s Tanka Tuesday poem which you can read here: https://tankatuesday.com/2026/09/29/tanka-tuesday84-feelings-end-or-beginnings-9-29-26/
Spring
buds blooming, birds constructing, hadeda ahead – brooding
bright birds, colourful flowers, creating, spring kaleidoscope
shredded petals, beheaded flowers, weaver – most destructive!
CFFC
Dan’s challenge is to share pictures of places people work. I looked for photographs of work places that are very different from my own office. You can join in here: https://nofacilities.com/2026/09/28/where-what-when-we-work-cffc/
Roberta Writes – d’Verse & W3, Sunday Stills and CFFC
Bjorn’s d’Verse challenge is to write above a pilgrimage. You can join in here: https://dversepoets.com/2026/09/22/poetics-pilgrimage-revisiting-your-journey/
Heather’s W3 challenge this week is to write an ode to something in nature. You can join in here: https://skepticskaddish.com/2026/09/23/w3-prompt-230-weave-written-weekly/
The two challenges fitted together naturally for me this week.
Ode to a Giraffe
My spirit rejoices, sense of well being restored
Enthusiasm, returning as though never misplaced
Patience a virtue that brings its own reward
Anxiety and stress with peacefulness replaced
I bask in the liquid depths of your calm gaze
Silent queen who uses her voice so rarely
Chewing thoughtfully as if
Viewing life through a rose coloured haze
How I wish I could see the world so clearly
Instead, change has always scared me stiff
***
Oh, that I could derive such simple pleasure
From the action of consuming my daily bread
Absorbing the sun’s warmth as golden treasure
Grateful for nature’s bounty that keep’s me fed
Your gentle expression and swaying grace
Neck swinging in rhythm with your amble
Unworried and totally at ease
In you, trouble and strife find no place
Watching you, my thoughts unscramble
Floating away on grace’s mellow breeze
***
Within the borders of this manmade sanctuary
You are free to follow your natural instincts
No familial burdens to make you weary
Societal expectations, wordless but succinct
Within the boundaries you are free to roam
Unimpeded by responsibilities choker chain
That always pulls me up short
Despite the fact we ultimately walk alone
It is necessary for us to share other’s pain
Obligation and duty not easy to thwart
***
Your environment artificially maintained
By humans who are deemed more intelligent
Yet, it seems our hands and feet are chained
To the way of life that’s our inheritance
I seek out your environment as my escape
From a frantic world spinning ever faster
Core central pillar
Pivotal in the wild and untamed landscape
My soul temporarily heals, avoiding disaster
Nature acts as my life’s tiller
Sunday Stills and CFFC
Terri’s Sunday Stills challenge is animals with antlers, horns and hooves. I am featuring the giraffe that inspired my poem above. Giraffes have hooves. Giraffes do not have horns. They have ossicones which are horn-like, skin-and-fur-covered bone structures on top of a their head’s that develop from hardened cartilage. You can join in here: http://secondwindleisure.com/2026/09/20/sunday-stills-animal-of-the-month-antlers-horns-and-hooves/
Dan’s challenge is where/what/when we vacation. Naturally, I mainly vacation in the bush either at a safari lodge or some other facility that is close to animals and nature. You can join in Dan’s challenge here: https://nofacilities.com/2026/09/21/where-what-when-we-vacation-cffc/
Isn’t this just the most beautiful giraffe you ever saw?
This is a portrait photograph of the same giraffe. These photographs were taken at Welgevonden Private Game Reserve in South Africa.
This photograph is of TC and I celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary at Welgevonden Private Game Reserve in February this year. There is a herd of elephants in the background.
The above photograph is of a Cape buffalo. Cape buffalo have large, heavy horns that typically curve downward and then sweep upward. In mature Cape buffalo bulls, the bases of the horns fuse together across the forehead to form a heavy, hard bone shield called a “boss”.
Roberta Writes – Reblog: In Touch with Nature – Sonic blast carpenter bees
Thank you for Kaye Lynne Book for hosting this post about carpenter bees.
Roberta Writes – Tanka Tuesday, d’Verse, CFFC & Thursday Doors, The Flower Hour & Sunday Stills
Today, I’m participating in six challenges. I think that is a record for me. Between the new job, my parents and their medical and other needs, and my painting, I run out of time every single week. I do write three articles a week for LatinosUSA and two a month for Writing to be Read and those are of my own crafting, so I don’t feel to bad about not posting personal blog posts as often. There are only so many hours in a week. I have also been experimenting with cakes for my parent’s wedding anniversary celebration next week. My new firm closes on 15 December. I am very excited as I think I’ll be able to create a gingerbread house this year. I need about a week pre-Christmas to do that.
Anyhow, on with this week’s poems and photographs. PS, I am having trouble with WP which is flipping all my portrait photographs landscape if I use a slideshow or gallery format. Is anyone else having this problem?
Tanka Tuesday
Yvette asked poet’s to write about heritage. Sometimes I feel as if our modern society is sadly lacking is respect for elders and manners. The muse brought this poem which is an American cinquain. You can join in here: https://tankatuesday.com/2026/09/15/tankatuesday-poetry-challenge-no-82-celebrating-heritage-9-15-26/
Inheritance
often
I tell my sons
‘manners maketh the man’
keep your social inheritence
intact
d’Verse
Kim’s beautiful challenge is Adagio for Strings. I had a tough week trying to solve some complex accounting problems. The muse was stubborn and only brought this when I listened to the beautiful music Kim provided for inspiration. Bad muse!
You can join in here: https://dversepoets.com/2026/09/15/poetics-adagio-for-strings/
Thank you for the music but …
music rises
like flames
licking at the edges
of my tired mind
trying
to strike a spark
that could smoulder
burst into flame
fanned by the winds
of enthusiastic
consumption
but
I’m too tired
the spark splutters
then dies
I just can’t
ride the waves
tonight
The Flower Hour & Sunday Stills
Terri’s Sunday Still’s challenge is orange, you can join in here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2026/09/13/sunday-stills-monthly-color-challenge-orange-you-glad-its-apricot/
Terri’s The Flower Hour challenge can be found here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2026/09/08/the-flower-hour-47-can-you-ever-get-enough-sunflowers/
Our clivias put on a magnificent show this year.
CFFC & Thursday Doors
These two challenges, hosted by Dan Antion, just went together this week.
Dan has a new Rascal book out so you can read all about it while you are visiting here: http://nofacilities.com/2026/09/17/rascals-research-begins/
Dan’s CFFC theme is where/when/how we shop. I decided to take you on a shopping tour of a few places in Brussels, Bruges, Bath, and Borough Market, UK (but not shopped at as I don’t like shopping). You can join in here: https://nofacilities.com/2026/09/14/where-what-when-we-shop-cffc/
Bruges and Brussels
Amsterdam
Bath, UK
Borough Market, London
Roberta Writes – d’Verse, Bird of the Week, Tanka Tuesday, Thursday Doors, The Flower Hour
d’Verse, Tanka Tuesday, and Bird of the Week
Melissa’s challenge word for Quadrille Monday was xonolith. I incorporated it into my Bird of the Week poem, a chain shadorma (with some difficulty due to syllabic count and word count). You can join in d’Verse here: https://dversepoets.com/2026/09/07/quadrille-255-x-marks-the-spot/. Melissa is also the host of Tanka Tuesday where she challenged poets to write a seasonal pi-ku. You can join in here: https://tankatuesday.com/2026/09/08/tankatuesday-poetry-challenge-no-81-pi-ku-9-8-26/. I added mine to the end of my bird poem.
You can join in Bird of the Week here: https://anotherglobaleater.wordpress.com/2026/09/08/javan-pond-heron-birds-of-the-week-clxxxv/
Cape Robin-chat (shadorma chain with pi-ku)
xenolith
within flycatcher
family
bright breasted
Cape robin-chat hops about
tail angled upwards
***
I observed
songbird foraging
in a tree
plucking bark
from long suffering branches
home to many birds
***
squawking its
harsh, trisyllabic
alarm call
WA-dur-da
it departed speedily
tail stiff with distress
***
spring influx
birds
fill my garden
Well, that was enough poetic suffering, oops I mean creativity, for this week. Now on to some photographs …
Thursday Doors
These are some doors photographs from my trip to Paris in April. These photographs are of the Pont des Arts, Institut de France is located at one entry point of the bridge in Paris which crosses the River Seine. You can join in Thursday Doors here: https://nofacilities.com/2026/09/10/bbq-dam-lock-tour/
The Flower Hour
More beautiful wisteria photographs from this past week. They are starting to go off now so this will be the last of them. The purple irises benefited from the rain early this week and are plentiful and vivid.
You can join in The Flower Hour here: https://secondwindleisure.com/2026/09/08/the-flower-hour-47-can-you-ever-get-enough-sunflowers/
