This is my First time reviewing anything, and keep in mind that I'm not studying Dentistry in the UK, nor in North America, so I don't know how well this book fits your oral and maxillofacial course's need. I'll talk from my own experience, as a student studying in Romania.
As we studied only oral surgery (4th year) I loved this book; The text was well written and to the point. The images were very suggestive and high quality. Chapters 1 to 7 are terrific! Because you can really apply the text to your everyday working routine (We actually work with patients starting 4th year; I'm not sure if most schools do that). There is literaly a picture to every point the authers are trying to get across!
But then you get to 5th year and you change your mind completely; The text is just not detailed enough. I know the book is aimed towards general dentists, but anything more complex then uncomplicated extractions is so lacking in detail; I'm talkng about things you should be able to perform almost routinely.
The Maxillofacial portion of the book was great to read as a 4th year student, but as a 5th year student (when I actually had to pass exams on such subjects as Trauma or surgical pathology) it didn't go into enough detail for me and my grades suffered. It just didn't prove to be the "reference text" I thought it was. Must I buy A Fonseca just to get in depth information about surgical extractions?
Now, to be fair, all this DOES NOT mean the book is bad; the reason I give it 4 stars is more important then that:
1) The quality of the pictures in chapter 20 (Diagnosis and management of salivary gland disorders) is remarkably of a lower quality compared to the rest of the book (the pictures are a bit out of focus and the colors are poorly defined... reminds me of the amazingly awful quality of the pictures in Burket's Oral Medicine). There are other minor mishaps in figure labelling (some times a figure will have 3 pictures, subdivided a, b and c, and the order of the pictures is wrong when compared to the description). Unfortunately, from my experience, you will find these kind of mistakes in almost every textbook, even the best ones (Not in Neville's Pathology, though).
2) Speaking of chapter 20; There is a picture in that chapter (figure 20-35) showing a man with "a left parotid gland infection". However, in chapter 10, they use the same picture(!), but this time to show a facial swelling (edema) after an extraction (figure 10-2); that's just laziness!
3) BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY; The book comes with access to internet material via Evolve, which serves me well with some other Elsevier titles, such as Sturdevant's Art and Science Of Operative Dentistry and the new edition of Neville's Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology (make sure to get that book because it's freakin great!). However, THERE IS NOTHING FOR THIS BOOK! They say there should be video clips of basic procedures, but all I keep seeing is a screen saying "COMING SOON..."... For more then 2 years now! The book came out at 2008! I'm gonna graduate before getting to see that material. I sent Elsevier an Email, but they didn't reply.
If it wasn't for that, I wouldn't get so mad at this book, but this is just irritating.
Update (21\03\11): I've received a reply from Elsevier and they basically told me there in no evolve material available for this edition, and that's the end of the story, really. Take that into you consideration.