Unlike most gun reviews, this one started out as an assignment from my editor rather than a curious inquiry to the manufacturer followed by me shamelessly begging said editor for an assignment about some much-coveted carry piece. In fact, I knew nothing about the new FNP-45 before the mysterious box showed up on my front doorstep.

Had I know then what I know now, our editor would have suffered a great deal more of my begging because I got the rare opportunity to go into a gun review without any preconceived notions or expectations.

When I first opened the FNP-45 box, I was shocked. It is an attractive pistol to be sure, but I couldn't believe how big it is. Good photography and its sleek styling make it look much smaller in the FNH advertisements than it is in real life.

Once I got used to its size, I examined the FNP-45 a little more closely. It's a conventional DA/SA pistol built on a one-piece polymer frame with interchangeable backstrap inserts. The frame has molded checkering on the sides and molded serrations in the frontstrap. A flared lip on the bottom belies the beveled magazine well that is designed to facilitate rapid reloads.

Other frame features include an integral, Picatinny-spec, accessory rail and the aforementioned interchangeable backstraps.

My test pistol came with just the arched backstrap, but it should have come with a flat backstrap as well. It wasn't the company's fault; someone had tested the gun before me and had forgotten to put the additional backstrap in the box. If I'd had more time, I would have ordered it, but I found the supplied backstrap to be quite comfortable, even for my tiny hands.

The backstrap is held in place with a single screw that is recessed into the backstrap. It is out of sight and does not affect the firing grip in the least. Replacing the backstrap takes just a few seconds, yet it is securely affixed once you screw it down.

The frame houses the FNP-45's controls, all of which, with the exception of the disassembly lever, are ambidextrous. This includes the decocking lever, which is located just above the strong-hand thumb, and the slide release, which is just ahead of the decocker.

The magazine release is in the conventional location behind the trigger guard, but rather than having to physically move the teardrop-shaped button from one side of the gun to the other--as in conventional "ambidextrous" designs--the FNP-45 has a mirror-image control on both sides of the frame.