Red Phoenix is a 1990 Possible War novel about a second Korean War written by Larry Bond in collaboration with Patrick Larkin. Taking advantage of internal conflicts in the US and South Korea, North Korean forces surge across the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in an operation code-named “Red Phoenix”.
Tropes Appearing In This Novel Include:
- Alternate History
- The Big Bad: Kim Jong-Il, commander of North Korea’s security agencies and armed forces, masterminds the invasion of South Korea.
- The Cold War
- Cool Plane: The Russians grant North Korea access to the MiG-29 "Fulcrum". The American F-16 "Fighting Falcon" jet and MH-53 "Pave Low" helicopter.
- Dirty Communists: The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Downplayed with the People’s Republic of China, which is beginning to embrace market reforms.
- Easy Logistics: After getting ordered to withdraw from South Korea, the US troops deliberately screw up their logistics so they can stay a little longer in anticipation of the invasion. This turns out to be a double-edged sword, because while they're still there to fight the war, they're badly supplied, and it takes them a while to undo the mess they made of their supply situation and get the front-line troops the things they need to fight effectively.
- Four-Star Badass: General McLaren.
- Title Drop: The North Korean operation to conquer the south is named “Red Phoenix”.
- We Have Reserves: North Korean forces often use their superiority in manpower this way.
