Wife has an M&P 9C she keeps in her truck. Very nice, I highly recommend them to anyone. Wife had never shot a handgun before this one. She is a natural with it. I would describe myself as an average marksman with tendencies to get lazy and fall back into bad habits. Even I can shoot it better than average with very little effort. (which is why I then bought a Glock...go figure) Glocks may get a lot of press, but the M&Ps just seem to quietly work and work well. They are (as demonstrated by the 5 or 6 people I've seen shoot the M&P) very easy to shoot well.
I think the M&P will have a much more natural feel for anyone that started shooting handguns before a particular Austrian handgun with it’s odd grip angle started to dominate the market.
Luv my 9c. Mine has no safety which worried me at first, but finally decided a good holster is your safety. Shoots smooth, hardly any recoil. Very reliable - shot about 700 rounds with 2 misfires which I think was due to improper cleaning.
Finally decided it was a little to big for carry so got a bodyguard .380.