Karambit (Signature Weapon)

 Okay, so I am trying to get my Signature Weapons series going, so I am blogging another one of them. I am thus blogging about the karambit, which from what I understands originates from Indonesia, but can be found around all of Southeast Asia and elsewhere. So it is again quite an exotic blade I am blogging about. I discovered it thanks Fight Write, by Carla Hoch, the book that inspired me to blog this very series on signature weapons. It even has its own entry in the book. The knife is meant to resemble a tiger's claw, at least according to folklore. It is a small, curved weapon that looks quite nasty: sharp, easily concealed, etc. It can be used as a tool, but also as a weapon. Personally, I think it looks far more like a weapon, and a nasty one at that, than a tool. In a crime fiction context, I think it would probably suit a villain more, given its rather devious capacities. Anyway, tell he what you think.

Attack of the Komodo dragon

Yesterday, I was blogging about James Bond. Today, I read a piece of news that reminded me of a scene in Skyfall: a 83 years old woman was attacked by a Komodo dragon. And she survived. In Skyfall, I thought the scene when the Komodo dragon attacks the badguy was a bit far-fetched: until recently, well until I read the story today, I thought they were basically bigger, scarier iguanas. One can get things wrong. In fact, Komodo dragons may not be as famous as crocodiles or alligators, but they are nasty hunters capable of aggressive behavior towards humans. They are pretty much carnivorous dinosaurs walking on earth. As a child, my brothers had some interest in them, we even thought that there were some Komodo dragons living in the wild not too far from home. This is a story I might tell in another blog post. Until then, what I read about them today renewed my interest in the reptile.