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Wife is a very small woman with very small hands. She cannot properly grasp a 1911 or even a 9mm. She has a J-frame but wants more rounds and quick reload capability. Hence my search for a good 380 for her and a Colt Mustang is at the top of the shopping list.
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I hate to lead you away from Colt since I'm a big fan myself (my 9mm Defender is a frequent carry piece), but the Colt Mustang, even being a fine pistol, only gives her one more round over the J-frame.
But if that's good with her, then I would highly recommend a serious look at the Ruger LCP. When I have to dress T-shirt light, it is undetectable in my front pocket in a clip-over pocket holster.
If the wife has small hands, then she will love the LCP, plus, it's very light. I take mine to the range often (as I do all my carry pistols) to blow off a few in order to have an excuse to clean it once in a while.
It has been stellar for reliability using any of the HP .380's like Gold Dots etc.
Her only problem using it as a purse gun will that it's small enough to get lost at the bottom if she doesn't use a holster attached somewhere inside the purse where it will always be quickly accessible, plus, she'll want it in a holster that will guard the trigger since it doesn't have a safety (that's a GOOD thing for a carry pistol).
The Mustang is a neat little gun, but from what you describe that your wife wants, the LCP should at least warrant a good look.
Last thing; the Rohrbough has been a pretty cool little pistol from it's inception, and I still have mine. It's a tiny 9mm that is about the same size as the LCP.
Anyway, fast forward, and Remington has bought out Rohrbough and is in the process of releasing it as the RM380. I have not seen one in person, but I can tell you that I like my Rohrbough so much that I will pick one up as soon as I run across one.
http://remingtonhandguns.com/rm380