I played a sunburst Les Paul custom deluxe many years ago, but I wouldn't concider that an entry level guitar.
If I was to get another one I would prolly go with a new Fender. I played a very old strat once, I absolutely loved the neck and it was about half the weight of the les paul. it just didn't have the same humbucker distortion I was looking for. I played through a marshall half stack and I more than made up for lack of quality by adding quantity, but my marshall only went to 10
The strat on e-bay looks like a very nice piece but again, not what I would consider entry-level.
Start off with one of the import Fenders for a couple hundred and if you really get into it, move up to the good stuff.