I have an HK45 (the new one) and it fits my hand well and is both accurate and reliable. Everyone has their favorites and guns they hate. There are a fair number of guys on my department that carry the XD 40's and 45's and they like them. I can shoot an XD better than a Glock, but the magazines I've seen have issues when you drop them during reloads like the feed lips bending. After the fiasco that was the S&W Sigma I have a hard time trusting S&W autos. Glocks have a good rep but I can't shoot them to the level of accuracy I demand, the grip and angle don't fit my hand, and I don't like how easy the magazine release button can be activated and turn your gun into a single shot. I have also owned, or been issued, several Glocks and the .45's have all malfunciton on me as did a brand new Glock 22 .40. It had a burr on the extractor causing multiple double feeds. I had a Sig P220 and a Sig P229. The 220 couldn't handle +P ammo and it bowed the slide out by the ejection port. This was before I reloaded and the only ammo this gun saw was factory. The 229 .40 I got wouldn't feed hollow points at all and after repeated trips to the gunsmith a large burr was found on the extractor (another burr!). The 229 is too bulky and heavy compared to other .40's anyway. I carried an HK USP .45 for a dutry gun for years and it went through 12,000 rounds of everything without a malfunction (I clean my gun after every range session). The downside, expensive, BIG, and HK's lack of customer service (but I hear it's getting better.) I now carry a Springfield Armory MC Operator 1911A1 .45. I've got 3000 rounds through it without a malfunction then I decided to upgrade it and a had a Colt gunsmith replace all the MIM parts and fit a National Match Kart barrel. This gun will outshoot anything I have ever owned before. However, I don't recommend the 1911 unless you plan on training with it alot and be prepared to have some work done on it. The Beretta doesn't even rate a review...
So, if I had to recommend a handgun I would say the HK USP compact series. I have owned several in .40 and .45 and they have all worked right out of the box withou modification except night sights.
If you have a local range that rents guns to shoot I would recommend that to see what feels comfortable. When you do get a handgun, shoot 400 to 500 rounds before carrying it to make sure you didn't get a lemmon.
Handguns are like a pair of shoes, one size will not fit everyone.
Just my opinion, of course.