Choosing your first derby skates

I've done so much reading over the last few weeks it's doing my head in.

From all the stuff I've read, Sure Grip or Riedell are the way to go for freshmeat like me.

I'm looking at the Sure Grip Rebels as my first skates. From what I've read, the wheels are ok out of the box and I like the idea of leather over vinyl.

Am I barking up the wrong tree here?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I'm off to Bayside Blades and Bladeworx on Sunday for a looksee (possible purchase).

Riedell or Antiks are both good and are leather. General advice that I've always been given- get the best you can afford and make sure they fit!

I ended up going with the Riedell She-Devils. They're perfect!

Is it always a case of more expensive = better? I'm doing some research to upgrade from my gt50s, taking the chance (hopefully) while on holidays in LA or NYC to grab something good. But not crazy exxy.