For Saxon Math, I think either you love it, or you hate it.  I LOVE it.  I love how you don't learn one concept, test on it, and then move on to the next, forgeting all about what you just learned.  Each lesson has review of things you have previously learned.  My son is currently in Saxon 5/4.  When the lesson seems too easy, we skip it and go to the next one.  I only have him do odds or evens, so instead of 27 problems, he does 13 or 14. There is a test every 5 lessons, and every day there are timed facts tests.   We also did 1st grade Saxon.  They had a lot of hands on stuff, but we didn't do much of that because my son is great at math.  They give two sheets of problems to do.  We only ever did one.  1st grade also has a test every 5 lessons and fact sheets everyday.  Saxon gives alot of work, but if you are able to skip things without feeling guilty, you will be ok.  If you are one of those people who HAVE to do everything, than Saxon would probably be alot of work.  I used feel bad about skipping things, but Saxon has actually helped me realize that if my son already knows it, why bother with it.  We skipped third grade math altogether, and barely did any second grade math.  I thought, why would I pay money for third grade math, when he knows it all already? 

By the way, I used Saxon math in high school.  I hated math until then.  With Saxon, I realized how easy math could be and that I was actually good at it.  I was behind in math when I first entered high school.  I ended up getting the highest grade in the class in Algrebra III/Trigonometry and Physics my senior year thanks to Saxon.