I'd say the M&P 45 compact would be a good choice. It's small enough to conceal and a good shooter. I would handle the above mentioned Glocks,Xd's and M&P's. For me the Glock didn't feel right in my hand but the XD and M&P did.
When I was 18 I had a Mossberg 12 gauge pump. Well I get this idea to shoot a old rubber bowling ball with some #6 shot. I blast the thing and the shot comes back at me hitting the siding on the house and 1 pellet in my right shoulder. It went threw my coat and shirt but didn't break the skin...
I've had mine for 8 months. It is fun to shoot and very accurate. I've ran about 600 rounds through it without a problem. It's my EDC in a crossbreed supertuck.
My favorite semi-auto 22 was a Browning Buckmark Camper that had a bull barrel,tru-glo front site and ultra grips. It was fun to shoot and the wife loved shooting it. But it was stolen last summer when my house was broken into.
I had a pistol stolen last summer that was just recovered 2 weeks ago by ISP. They didn't call me but the St. Joe Cty. Police that came out when my house was broken into called and told me that ISP had my gun and to call them if I wanted it back.