Stiletto the Allied side, the French Lebel M1886 épée (needle sword) bayonet was frequently cut down and converted into a stiletto or thrusting knife ("Poignard-Baïonnette Lebel"). These weapons were used to eliminate sentries in trench raids as well as for personal defense. As a class, these daggers, knives, and stilettos were given the title trench knife. World War II saw a resurgence of the stiletto in the form of combat knives for commando raiding forces and other troops who needed a weapon for silent killing. In late 1940, the famed British hand-to-hand combat instructors William E. Fairbairn and Eric A. Sykes
The Black Stiletto the vigilante's image and mystique was exploited by the media in comics, films, and action figures. "Who was the Black Stiletto?" became a catch-question like "Who shot JFK?" "The Black Stiletto" was released in the US on 5 September 2011. As part of the promotional process for the novel, a free downloadable teaser short story, "The Black Stiletto's Autograph" was made available on the official website. Reviewing "The Black Stiletto", academic Dr Wesley Britton noted that "verisimilitude is one strength of what could have been just a comic-book romp without pictures" and that because of this, the novel was "a