Likewise, I found JP's AFE books very good some years ago, nicely written, well presented diagrams/illustrations/photos.
Trevor Thom's books are good but apparantly some find them a bit 'dry' and a little dull. I've only used book 5 of his series (RNAV/IMC) and thought it was fine. both of these (& is there another set???) have their fans and detractors.
Def. get a confuser (will make exams alot easier) but make sure it's a current one if you are buying from Amazon as some sellers try to palm off old editions. I was looking for an IMC confuser last year and a fair few vendors were selling the previous one rather than the latest edition.
Amazon is a good move tho' as the confuser was a few pounds cheaper and the latest TThom Vol.5 was £8 cheaper, brand new but 'seconds' just because it had a tiny black mark on one edge for god's sake!!!!!