I’ll be upfront and say that, while I have on occasion swooned over a counter display of  pocket knives from Case (I just love the rainbow of colors), or a skinner collection from Buck Knives, I know little about blades and hilts beyond the couple skinning knives in my deer hunting pack and the couple Wusthof kitchen knives I own.

Truthfully, and with the exception of an antique stag-handled German carving set my mother refuses to let me prematurely inherit, I haven’t had much interest in knives beyond their utilitarian designs. But then I filled in and did a quick edit on Knives 2013, The World’s Greatest Knife Book—and my outlook changed completely.

I was dazzled, absolutely starstruck by the beautiful knives my colleague and fellow editor Joe Kertzman assembled in these pages. Sure, I knew there were custom blade makers out there who could truly be considered artists. And I’m passingly familiar with the story of Jim Bowie and the large, belt-sheathed creations that are his namesake. But wow, oh wow.

Whether you’re a devotee of Damascus blades, jewel encrusted daggers, butterfly knives that can cut through butterflies, and edges so sharp a surgeon would trade in his scalpel, or whether you’re someone like me (you mean these things do more than cut steak and tomatoes?), then you’re in for a complete and utter treat with Knives 2013.

Click here to order Knives 2013, The World’s Greatest Knife Book. Take a wander through, you’ll like what you find there!