I bought a Walther P22 for my wife about 2 years ago and it goes to the range with me everytime I go. It has never misfired, is not picky about ammo, and is overall very fun to shoot. The price is very reasonable and I think very well worth the money.
for a single action revolver a Ruger Single Six,for an auto you cant go wrong with a Ruger either.Double action action revolver a S&W K-22 if your flush or a Charter Pathfinder if your not.
I had a Browning Buckmark with fiber optic sights. That was the best thing ever invented for old eyes.
For plinking, I would go with the Buckmark.
For back up I carry a North American Arms mini revolver in 22 mag.
It would be good for up close and personal protection.
I really like the S&W 22 target pistol. I bought it from Gander and it was 1 of 1000. It has a carbon fiber finish. It has a Tru glow scope and is very accurate. It was 225.00 but it was used. The receipt from the original owner was 268.
I like shooting it.
Ruger Mk III 22/45 Target, have shot thousands of rounds through it without any flaw, doesn't matter what you run through it, shoots it and is accurate with them, but seems to prefer the bulk Federal 550 round 40 gr HP.
I inherited my dad's MkI from 1955. It won't eat HPs, and I was considering extending the ramp so it would. I was talked out of it. I got a MkIII, and lo and behold, when I disassembled it, the ramp had been extended exactly as I'd figured to do with the MkI. I spent about an hour banging on it to get it back together. The MkI is more broken in, so it's no problem reassembling. I may yet extend the ramp on the MkI, but meanwhile I have a MkIII to play with.