Hello Mike
Welcome to the forum. You have come to the right place.
The royal road is a great book to have but i prefer the DVD set as i like to visualise it more. But either one is a good one to start off with.
Can i also say magic clubs are a great place to join and get advice and ideas on card magic. It may be also worth attending a few magic conventions as there is always plenty of demos and shows going on to give you a great idea of where to going with your magic ideas. Local to you there is one in Southport, Manchester or the Big one which is Blackpool. You can travel a little further to our Midlands Magic Day

where we have a couple of top card magic lectures going on.
http://www.magicday.co.uk
For decks of cards there are loads of people out there its up to you which one you want to choose from. I would start going through the advertisers and see which one has them at the right price for you. Most are around £2 for a standard rider deck of bikes (which will be all you will need for now). You can go for fancy designed bike decks at around £5 each.
I must stop typing now! LOL
Look forward to seeing you around
Regards
Matthew