Aggie,
I truly believe you'll find that bows are a lot like rifles in several ways.
You can read and read, study and study and then get your heart set on a particular rifle (bow) and you go pick it up and shoulder it (or draw a bow) and it feels like crap! Or your buddies will tell you that one is the best that money can buy and you draw it and hate it! Another similiarity is the fact that the price range is very very wide.
My personal advice to other guys like in your situation is that you first have to decide what your budget is. You can easily go to a bow shop and spend $500 and go kill a deer. And you can just as easily go and spend $1300 and go home with top-of-the-line equipment.
Once you find that number, then go to a bow shop and start kicking tires!!! If you can spend $500 or $600 then don't ask the dealer to show you the best bow he has. He is going to hand you something like a Z7 and you'll fall in love and then you'll either bust your budget or "settle" for something just because it's in your range. Again, tell him what you want to spend and find the bow in that range that you like the best.
What you'll find when you read is that there are the "big 3" when it comes to bows. Mathews, Hoyt and Bowtech. Then there are lots and lots of other companies that make really good bows. Companies like PSE, Fred Bear, Martin, Ross and Parker just to name a few (sorry guys if I left your favorite out!).
As far as what you'll look for...You'll find yourself liking a particular draw cycle, like a smooth drawing single cam or maybe you'll like the dual cam better. You find that you like the feel of a certain axle to axle length. Some like the short 28"-32" and some want a 36" bow. Some are ok with a 6" brace height and some require 7" to be happy. Plan to be there for a good 2 or 3 hours to do it right.
Do yourself a big favor though, make sure the dealer measures you so you get a bow that fits you perfect. At this point in the game if you get a bow that doesn't fit and you learn to shoot that way it will be a bitch to correct a couple years of bad habits! I also recommend you putting a kisser button on it and a peep sight. Some may disagree with that part of it, but you need be ABSOLUTELY SURE that you anchor that string in the same place EVERYTIME and I think those two things help tremendously with that. Again, start with good habits and shooting disciplines and buy a good bow and your groups will tighten up and you'll be eating bow killed backstraps before you know it bro!!!
I personally LOVE bow shopping!!! Hell I'm excited for you!!!
Keep us posted!!!