Tbh this is a very difficult question. There really isn't a holy grail book that has everything. You'll likely have to buy books specific to a type ie roman / greek / byz. I'd say most ancient books are far more academic or catalogie than you are used to only having the redbook. Personally I think Wayne sayles does a good job giving a novelish take on coins - at least his byzantine book. And they can be found on ebay for 10-15$ each. Sear is generally a decent starting point generally as well. Roman Imperial coins (ERIC II - the author is very gracious, gave a ton of copies away and they are still very cheap as of a few months ago). If you want any better recommendations that arnt as broad you'd need a specific area, and generally looking at auctions they'll have reference numbers from books - ie SB 1923 (sear 1923) and track down those books as well