What do you think?
Christmas on the Anvil
It’s the night before Christmas, when all through the ship not an engine is stirring, not even a peep…
It’s Christmas Eve on the Anvil and everyone’s getting ready for the celebration. Everyone but the spaceship’s grumpy XO/navigator. When mysterious Christmas-themed things start happening, can the jaded second-in-command debunk the myth, or will she start to believe in the magic of Santa and the sleigh?
Filled to bursting with humour and Christmas songs you know and love to hate.
Get into the spirit of Christmas with the Anvil’s crew in this light-hearted seasonal romp from the author of Jane Poole Genesis and Her Last Run.
It’s Christmas Eve on the Anvil and everyone’s getting ready for the celebration. Everyone but the spaceship’s grumpy XO/navigator. When mysterious Christmas-themed things start happening, can the jaded second-in-command debunk the myth, or will she start to believe in the magic of Santa and the sleigh?
Filled to bursting with humour and Christmas songs you know and love to hate.
Get into the spirit of Christmas with the Anvil’s crew in this light-hearted seasonal romp from the author of Jane Poole Genesis and Her Last Run.
53 pages, ebook
Published December 3, 2018
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
December 9, 2018
What a sweet and fun read! Full of hope and belief, not only in magic and fairytales, but in ourselves, in our resilience, in our adaptability, in our ability to find joy and laughter with our fellow beings. The characters, the team of the Anvil, are a fantastic misfit gang! This has prompt me to bring forward the Jane Poole series in my TBR list! Beautiful story! Perfect for throughout the year!
December 7, 2018
This sweet, hearty-warming and tear-inducing holiday tale about a Scrooge-like Executive Officer on board a starship was awesome to read. Loved the humor as well as the stuff that had me all teared up while riding the bus. This was the first thing I have read by this author and it makes me want to read the series this book is set in. It gets nine reindeer and a jolly Santa!
December 26, 2018
*Read for free with kindle Unlimited * Happy Holidays/Merry Xmas!
---
Quote from the story:
It’s the night before Christmas, when all through the ship
Not an engine is stirring, not even a peep;
The Tiergans hang greenery on bulkheads with zest,
The Anvil at Christmas must look at its best;
Look, Sigma’s all snugly in warm comfy bed
Hopes eggnog will stifle the Voice in her head;
At cockpit, Zach Gorman is calm as he’s been, Who knows what he’s thinking, that outlawed machine;
Rhys’ dancing and singing would wake up the dead,
He’s building a big screen for movies ahead.
But what about Nadie? Please take a soft chair
And read all about her big Christmas affair!
Not as christmasy as I hoped... story was just okay, the latter half was better but still underwhelming.
Was curious enough to finish.. wouldn't read again and it doesn't inspire me to read the series.
---
Quote from the story:
It’s the night before Christmas, when all through the ship
Not an engine is stirring, not even a peep;
The Tiergans hang greenery on bulkheads with zest,
The Anvil at Christmas must look at its best;
Look, Sigma’s all snugly in warm comfy bed
Hopes eggnog will stifle the Voice in her head;
At cockpit, Zach Gorman is calm as he’s been, Who knows what he’s thinking, that outlawed machine;
Rhys’ dancing and singing would wake up the dead,
He’s building a big screen for movies ahead.
But what about Nadie? Please take a soft chair
And read all about her big Christmas affair!
Not as christmasy as I hoped... story was just okay, the latter half was better but still underwhelming.
Was curious enough to finish.. wouldn't read again and it doesn't inspire me to read the series.
December 8, 2018
“I don’t believe in magic, or Christmas, or that you’re the real Santa.” “And I don’t believe in taxes. That doesn’t mean they don’t exist.” “You’re a strange man, Nick.”
Nadine and the rest of the crew get a visit, or a memory, or a hologram from Santa, and Nadine, like the Grinch grew a little softer as her little child remembers the Christmas Eve she got what she wished for.
Sweet, salty, wistful all wrapped up in Penmore’s usual “snark”. I enjoyed it. 5/5
Nadine and the rest of the crew get a visit, or a memory, or a hologram from Santa, and Nadine, like the Grinch grew a little softer as her little child remembers the Christmas Eve she got what she wished for.
Sweet, salty, wistful all wrapped up in Penmore’s usual “snark”. I enjoyed it. 5/5
December 8, 2018
Great story
This was a new twist (at least to me) on "It's a wonderfully life" and I really enjoyed it. The story is short and funny. O definitely would recommend adding this story to Christmas reads.
This was a new twist (at least to me) on "It's a wonderfully life" and I really enjoyed it. The story is short and funny. O definitely would recommend adding this story to Christmas reads.
December 23, 2023
This was a nice Christmas read. A futuristic tale with a bit of "It's a Wonderful Life". Some lovely Christmas magic with fun characters and heart.
December 23, 2018
Too many writers take themselves too seriously. Nobody will ever accuse Michael Penrmore of that. He writes easily about characters who are out of this world, which is not suprising, since I am abso-blooomin'-lutely convinced the author himself is an alien, sent to distract humanity and until "they" can spring their diabolical trap to... you know. Get all post-apocalyptic invasion on our complacent keesters. But seriously, folks...
Penmore is bright, witty, and totally crazy. You'll love it, like I did.
Penmore is bright, witty, and totally crazy. You'll love it, like I did.
March 7, 2022
Very schmaltzy and with a cliche ending. Doesn’t seem like the first of a series, either.
I picked this book up on a promotion when I saw that it was the first of a sci-fi series. From the description it seemed like an ensemble sci-fi story in the vein of the Firefly TV show and the “Black Ocean” series by J S Morin. In some ways this is certainly true, but this is an unusual book to start a series with, especially as it doesn’t really introduce most of the characters, and it left me clueless about what the other books in the series might be like.
From what I can gather, “The Anvil” is a spacecraft with a quirky crew including an android and possibly at least one passenger. The story starts with the ship in deep space where the captain has determined (and it is never explained how) that it is Christmas Eve. Most of the crew get caught up in American Christmas traditions such as decorating the halls with lights and plastic decorations and watching “It’s a Wonderful Life”, but Executive Officer Nadine Chu is concerned that all the festivities leaves the ship open to attack. She seals herself in the ship's navigation cockpit with the android and let’s them get on with it.
If you have ever read a Christmas book or seen a Christmas film, you will know that somehow the magic of Christmas will change her mind and mend her grinchy ways, but what rescues this book from the slush pile of sickly holiday pap is the way it is done. At first it seems like it is heading down the route of the most cynical seasonal exploitation, and I nearly stopped reading, but then it delves into Nadie’s backstory and things all make a bit more sense.
Unfortunately the story ends and resolves all the mystery with the most cliché of endings, and this left me even more confused about the rest of the series. Are they all thinly-disguised schmaltz like this one? Are they supposed to be funny or serious? Do readers ever get a better idea of the rest of the characters or the reason the ship is hiding in deep space in the first place?
I might read another one of these if it is free, but I won’t be paying for it based on this one.
I picked this book up on a promotion when I saw that it was the first of a sci-fi series. From the description it seemed like an ensemble sci-fi story in the vein of the Firefly TV show and the “Black Ocean” series by J S Morin. In some ways this is certainly true, but this is an unusual book to start a series with, especially as it doesn’t really introduce most of the characters, and it left me clueless about what the other books in the series might be like.
From what I can gather, “The Anvil” is a spacecraft with a quirky crew including an android and possibly at least one passenger. The story starts with the ship in deep space where the captain has determined (and it is never explained how) that it is Christmas Eve. Most of the crew get caught up in American Christmas traditions such as decorating the halls with lights and plastic decorations and watching “It’s a Wonderful Life”, but Executive Officer Nadine Chu is concerned that all the festivities leaves the ship open to attack. She seals herself in the ship's navigation cockpit with the android and let’s them get on with it.
If you have ever read a Christmas book or seen a Christmas film, you will know that somehow the magic of Christmas will change her mind and mend her grinchy ways, but what rescues this book from the slush pile of sickly holiday pap is the way it is done. At first it seems like it is heading down the route of the most cynical seasonal exploitation, and I nearly stopped reading, but then it delves into Nadie’s backstory and things all make a bit more sense.
Unfortunately the story ends and resolves all the mystery with the most cliché of endings, and this left me even more confused about the rest of the series. Are they all thinly-disguised schmaltz like this one? Are they supposed to be funny or serious? Do readers ever get a better idea of the rest of the characters or the reason the ship is hiding in deep space in the first place?
I might read another one of these if it is free, but I won’t be paying for it based on this one.
November 4, 2024
Thank you Amazon Prime @amazonorime , and Alice Webb for this free ebook.
”Christmas on the Anvil: A Science Consortium Story” (On the Anvil #1) by Michael Penmore. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Short Story. Location: Space: In the middle of nowhere on the military spaceship Anvil. Time: Christmas Eve, future.
It's Christmas Eve, and the Anvil’s whole misfit crew is getting ready. Except Navigator/2nd in Command Nadine (Nadie) Chu. Scrooge-like, she hates the decorations, music, and movies. She doesn’t have time for fun and cheer when everyone else is decorating the halls with lights and plastic decorations and watching “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Captain Rhys calls her the Grinch (whatever that is), but Nadie’s worried all the distractions leave the ship open to attack. She seals herself in the ship's cockpit with quiet Zachary Gorman, ship’s android. Then, a roof hatch in a cargo bay suddenly opens, and Christmas Eve is shattered by a stealthy boarding party. Nadie must face her fears and recall long-forgotten memories to repel the mysterious invader. Will she debunk the Santa Claus myth, or will she start to believe in the magic of Santa and his sleigh? Can Santa can find those on his nice list even when they’re lightyears from Earth?
Author Penmore has written a clever, short reimagining of “The Night Before Christmas”. It’s an enjoyable, quick read full of snarky yet sweet humor. His characters are entertaining and snappy: (Nadine:”I don’t believe in magic, or Christmas, or that you’re the real Santa.” Nick: “And I don’t believe in taxes. That doesn’t mean they don’t exist.” Nadine: “You’re a strange man, Nick.”) If you like short space stories full of humor and memories, check out this book. It’s your new bedtime story, and it’s 4 stars from me!🌵📚💁🏼♀️🎀
”Christmas on the Anvil: A Science Consortium Story” (On the Anvil #1) by Michael Penmore. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️Genre: Short Story. Location: Space: In the middle of nowhere on the military spaceship Anvil. Time: Christmas Eve, future.
It's Christmas Eve, and the Anvil’s whole misfit crew is getting ready. Except Navigator/2nd in Command Nadine (Nadie) Chu. Scrooge-like, she hates the decorations, music, and movies. She doesn’t have time for fun and cheer when everyone else is decorating the halls with lights and plastic decorations and watching “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Captain Rhys calls her the Grinch (whatever that is), but Nadie’s worried all the distractions leave the ship open to attack. She seals herself in the ship's cockpit with quiet Zachary Gorman, ship’s android. Then, a roof hatch in a cargo bay suddenly opens, and Christmas Eve is shattered by a stealthy boarding party. Nadie must face her fears and recall long-forgotten memories to repel the mysterious invader. Will she debunk the Santa Claus myth, or will she start to believe in the magic of Santa and his sleigh? Can Santa can find those on his nice list even when they’re lightyears from Earth?
Author Penmore has written a clever, short reimagining of “The Night Before Christmas”. It’s an enjoyable, quick read full of snarky yet sweet humor. His characters are entertaining and snappy: (Nadine:”I don’t believe in magic, or Christmas, or that you’re the real Santa.” Nick: “And I don’t believe in taxes. That doesn’t mean they don’t exist.” Nadine: “You’re a strange man, Nick.”) If you like short space stories full of humor and memories, check out this book. It’s your new bedtime story, and it’s 4 stars from me!🌵📚💁🏼♀️🎀
December 19, 2018
Scrooge space style
What a great take on a traditional theme but with overtures of how we should live together and help each other. Loved the characters and although not as simple as the original characters these are full of the angst we see around us today. Intolerance, disbelief and the desire to distance ourselves from those less fortunate / different from us.
She has always been serious and slightly intolerant of Christmas. What was the point of watching a movie about an attempted suicide and thinking it was a good thing? They should be trying to get to a safe spot not covering surfaces in lights and bright coloured objects. As she goes around doing her work she comes across, what she can only call, reindeer! It must be an illusion! It gets worse when she sees a Christmas tree and an old guy dressed in red. What and how are the two main questions on her mind. When he decides to take her on a side trip to the past, she cannot believe it is real. Can she remember the feeling of that Christmas so long ago? Will she allow the feeling back?
What a great take on a traditional theme but with overtures of how we should live together and help each other. Loved the characters and although not as simple as the original characters these are full of the angst we see around us today. Intolerance, disbelief and the desire to distance ourselves from those less fortunate / different from us.
She has always been serious and slightly intolerant of Christmas. What was the point of watching a movie about an attempted suicide and thinking it was a good thing? They should be trying to get to a safe spot not covering surfaces in lights and bright coloured objects. As she goes around doing her work she comes across, what she can only call, reindeer! It must be an illusion! It gets worse when she sees a Christmas tree and an old guy dressed in red. What and how are the two main questions on her mind. When he decides to take her on a side trip to the past, she cannot believe it is real. Can she remember the feeling of that Christmas so long ago? Will she allow the feeling back?
December 20, 2019
Intruder Alert! A Must-Read Battle for the Season.
The silent night of the spaceship Anvil is shattered by a stealthy and powerful boarding party. While everyone else on board are too distracted by festivities, Nadine, the ship’s no-nonsense navigator, must face her fears and recall long-forgotten memories to repel the mysterious invader.
Michael Penmore has managed to blend together a host of favorite Christmas tales in a fantastic seasonal story sure to delight readers of any age.
This awesome new Christmas bed-time story propels us across the Universe. It is like a literary candy-cane. Short and sweet with a swirl and a hook.
July 18, 2020
A Holiday in Space
Navigator Nadine doesn't have time for holidays, or fun, or cheer. The rest of the crew of the Anvil, a spaceship making its way across the galaxy, is excited to celebrate Christmas Eve. While Nadine does all she can to resist holiday cheer, the others embrace it. Suddenly there is a disturbance on board - is it possible that Santa can find those on his nice list even when they are lightyears from Earth?
This is a cute Christmas story in a unique setting. The plot is pretty formulaic, but it's a formula that works. Nadine's anger is a little heavy handed but most of the others are more evenly written, such as Rhys being a fun loving guy who gets serious when he investigates the ship for intruders. It's light on romance, focusing more on the internal struggle of Nadine's allowing herself to feel joy.
Navigator Nadine doesn't have time for holidays, or fun, or cheer. The rest of the crew of the Anvil, a spaceship making its way across the galaxy, is excited to celebrate Christmas Eve. While Nadine does all she can to resist holiday cheer, the others embrace it. Suddenly there is a disturbance on board - is it possible that Santa can find those on his nice list even when they are lightyears from Earth?
This is a cute Christmas story in a unique setting. The plot is pretty formulaic, but it's a formula that works. Nadine's anger is a little heavy handed but most of the others are more evenly written, such as Rhys being a fun loving guy who gets serious when he investigates the ship for intruders. It's light on romance, focusing more on the internal struggle of Nadine's allowing herself to feel joy.
December 10, 2018
👽🛸🚀🛰🌲 5 stars ✨
Christmas on the Anvil
Michael Penmore
Read on iBooks, Kobo, KyBook (1, 2, & 3), BookBub, kindle, SmashWords, and others.
Started: 10 December 2018.
Finished: 10 December 2018. Amazon: ?
Title:
Even the little things . . . .
A new, interesting retelling of an old, old tale. One that can persuade some to believe in the Season, again. And describes how much a starship can be decorated using imagination, decorations, and magic.
You ll have to read this short book to get the full story. Trust me, it s worth it!
Live life,
John Shrek Walters
Christmas on the Anvil
Michael Penmore
Read on iBooks, Kobo, KyBook (1, 2, & 3), BookBub, kindle, SmashWords, and others.
Started: 10 December 2018.
Finished: 10 December 2018. Amazon: ?
Title:
Even the little things . . . .
A new, interesting retelling of an old, old tale. One that can persuade some to believe in the Season, again. And describes how much a starship can be decorated using imagination, decorations, and magic.
You ll have to read this short book to get the full story. Trust me, it s worth it!
Live life,
John Shrek Walters
January 13, 2020
A nice and funny Christmas story.
It's Christmas in the Anvil, and second-in-command Nadia is Mrs. Scrooge. She hates the decorations, the music and the movies. While keeping watch over the ship, an intruder comes in board. I like the characters and humor. This is made me laugh.
It's Christmas in the Anvil, and second-in-command Nadia is Mrs. Scrooge. She hates the decorations, the music and the movies. While keeping watch over the ship, an intruder comes in board. I like the characters and humor. This is made me laugh.
June 15, 2020
Nadine Chu is disgruntled and ticked off. The captain of the Anvil was wanting to drag everyone including her into his Christmas indulgence. But she was not about to put up with that. Until, that is, she had an unexpected encounter of the weird kind. A quick read with plenty of music, hints of mayhem, snarky comments, and plain fun to read.
August 3, 2020
Who says Christmas is not special
On the Anvil XO Nadia is not interested in Christmas it was member celebrated in the home. So why is she seeing Santa on the spaceship miles away from any inhabited place?
A futuristic take on a Christmas carol maybe?
Read it and decide for yourselst.
On the Anvil XO Nadia is not interested in Christmas it was member celebrated in the home. So why is she seeing Santa on the spaceship miles away from any inhabited place?
A futuristic take on a Christmas carol maybe?
Read it and decide for yourselst.
December 30, 2018
Ho ho ho.
A story of belief, of hope, of reindeer poop.
Nadine is a real unbeliever of the joys of Christmas so a special person arrives to show her what it is all about.
Funny story, sweet too.
A story of belief, of hope, of reindeer poop.
Nadine is a real unbeliever of the joys of Christmas so a special person arrives to show her what it is all about.
Funny story, sweet too.
December 31, 2018
Jolly tale
How would Xmas be on a spaceship well this Xmas short tells the tale of a woman more of a Grinch than a believer but has some lovely Xmas magic to it if in need of a bit more editing.
How would Xmas be on a spaceship well this Xmas short tells the tale of a woman more of a Grinch than a believer but has some lovely Xmas magic to it if in need of a bit more editing.
April 8, 2019
Cute
Everyone knows Santa is rubbish. Right? That's how Nadie feels until the man himself visits the Anvil. Is it Santa or is he some kind of fiendish hallucination.
A cute Christmas story for anytime of year.
Everyone knows Santa is rubbish. Right? That's how Nadie feels until the man himself visits the Anvil. Is it Santa or is he some kind of fiendish hallucination.
A cute Christmas story for anytime of year.
December 4, 2019
Christmas magic
Santa visits a spaceship to help a crewmember regain her Christmas spirit.
This was a nice sci-fi Christmas short story. It is not often that you find sci-fi stories with a Christmas theme. So this makes a nice change.
Santa visits a spaceship to help a crewmember regain her Christmas spirit.
This was a nice sci-fi Christmas short story. It is not often that you find sci-fi stories with a Christmas theme. So this makes a nice change.
December 7, 2018
It was a cute story for the holidays
December 8, 2018
This was a new twist (at least to me) on "It's a wonderfully life" and I really enjoyed it. The story is short and funny. Would definitely would recommend adding this story to Christmas reads.
December 8, 2018
A fun Christmas themed sci-fi short story.
December 11, 2018
cute book. Humorous and sentimental. I almost had tears in my eyes. Easy reading with a lot of Christmas Spirit involved.
December 17, 2018
Fun take on Christmas scrooge and the magic in your heart! Fast Kindle read that leaves you smiling and singing a little Christmas ditty in your head!
December 21, 2018
Ho Ho Ho and a Merry Christmas!
A Merry Christmas to all! A great short story showing the spirit of Christmas will never die. I loved this!
A Merry Christmas to all! A great short story showing the spirit of Christmas will never die. I loved this!
December 22, 2018
Santa visits outer space to bring the magic of Christmas to non believer, Nadine. A short story with just the right amount of Christmas spirit.
February 11, 2019
Cute story
This was a cute story that made me smile !!
The chaos is similar to my "Earth" Christmas experiences too ! Just wish I had that " magic" too!
This was a cute story that made me smile !!
The chaos is similar to my "Earth" Christmas experiences too ! Just wish I had that " magic" too!
April 8, 2019
I found this book for free on Amazon via Freebooksy; this is my honest review.
Great story with an unexpected end. Good mix of Christmas classics.
Great story with an unexpected end. Good mix of Christmas classics.
June 16, 2019
I really enjoyed this amusing short story! A nice change from end of the world stories or straight sci fi! Liked it!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews