 Thriller novel reviewer The Real Book Spy stated that "While it’s already drawn comparisons to Tom Clancy’s Red Storm Rising (1986), Red Metal boasts even more action and tension, reading like a modern-day Game of Thrones (without the dragons and White Walkers), as individuals go all-in fighting for their cause—often with little regard for the rest of the world.Much like George R.R.Martin’s epic fantasy saga, Greaney and Rawlings rely more on their characters to drive the story than the explosions, gunfights, and eye-candy, of which there is still plenty.