Alright, here's the deal. If you own even one book in the Achieving Kicking Excellence series, you know what to expect from this one. As usual, Shawn Kovacich has done a spectacular job of illuminating the ins and outs of the kick upon which this title focuses. The long and short of this review: if you use the Crescent Kick in your martial arts practice, you really want to own this book. If you are not a martial artist, but want to develop this kick, again, this is a great book to own.

The topics covered within the pages of this book range from the purely informative (anatomy as it relates to the kick) to the purely functional (how to get more power out of the kick) and everything in between. This is really a groundbreaking series. At some point I'd love to see this type of breakdown for every technique in every martial art. It seems like a pipe dream, but Mr. Kovacich is getting us well on our way through the documenting of these excellent kicking techniques.

As is the norm with the series, some of the opening information is duplicated from other books in the series - undoubtedly so that a buyer who only purchased one or two of the books is guaranteed to get that vital information. This duplication also has very little affect on the value of the book to purchasers of the full set, as the real meat and potatoes of the book is the technique-specific information.

The variations on the primary kick which are presented in this book are worthy additions, and one can't help but realize just how much valuable information is presented.

This book, and the series as a whole, comes very highly recommended. This title is excellent for anyone with an interest in self-defense, and the practicing martial artist will likely find the value here to be worth substantially more than the cost of entry.