There are plenty of rifles and calibers to choose from, and several at least that will suit your present hunting needs. But take your time and think on your decision, and don't be hasty.
A deer caliber that can "power through" brush is a misconception. Unless you are shooting artillery rounds (or their close kin) your bullets will be affected by hitting even the smallest of twigs. If you are needing to "thread the needle" through brush, your best bet is a relatively flat-shooting round.
If recoil is a concern, stay on the lighter end of the deer spectrum. The 30-30 is relatively light on recoil (varies with load and gun), but there are others in the same neighborhood. It might be a good idea to decide what bore size you will want, and then choose a lighter-recoil caliber in that bore size. I would highly recommend staying between .257 and 7mm (.284) bore sizes for whitetails if recoil is a concern. This way you can get bullet weights that perform well on deer-sized game, but not have the recoil of the heavier bullets. These will be flatter-shooting than their big-bore cousins of similar bullet velocity, too.
In my experience bullets from about 120 grain up to 150 grain (the latter upper limit because you want reduced recoil) are best for deer-sized game. There are really too many calibers that fit the bill for me to list, but the more common ones in each bore that would work and offer good factory loads are: .257 Roberts or .25-06, .260 or 6.5x55, and 7x57 or 7mm-08.
Be sure to look beyond your 40-acre brush patch. There may be a day when you will want to use your gun to shoot a little further than you can now. Make sure your gun choice gives you the option to hunt in as many ways as you can, given the limitations you want in your new gun.
Most of all, have fun choosing and shooting it!
