I agree with the caveat that the mechanical ability needed is pretty light, not to mention that there are bike shops that will put it together for people.

OTOH, when a cousin asked my advice, I steered him to an LBS, Casters in RI, because he has no mechanical aptitude and I felt that they would take care of him. They treated him OK, though he ended up with a front suspension mtn bike for the road. In fairness to the shop, I was not there so don't know what he told them regarding the selection, and they've been good about follow-up issues, inlcuding replacing a wheel under warranty.