What’s the CRAZIEST thing in YOUR purse?

Coming September 10th!

Remember Let’s Make a Deal, the old television game show hosted by Monty Hall? Sometimes Monty would offer cash to the first woman to produce a specific item from her purse. For instance, he might offer $10 for every pen, or lipstick, or paper clip. Sometimes he’d specify an unlikely item, such as a screwdriver or pincushion—and you’d be amazed at how often someone jumped up waving what he’d asked for. It’s often funny what we carry in our purses, isn’t it? What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever found in your purse?

That question is the premise of the FINDERS KEEPERS boxset wherein eight authors, including yours truly, were tasked with writing stories based on one unexpected thing the heroine finds in her purse. The “found” items are fun and diverse—and I promise you many hours of happy reading with this boxset.

In my novel, KILLER LOVE, the heroine, Carly, finds a stray kitten in her bag at the park. Here’s the summary:

Carly Brenner is a recovering alcoholic fighting to keep her life on track after a divorce left her financially devastated. New to the Gulf Coast island of Kiss Key, she works three jobs to make ends meet and struggles with “leaping before she looks”, a habit that gets her into continuous trouble—especially as it pertains to the handsome man who rescues her from a “killer critter” hiding in her tote at the park.

Nolan Maddux is a dedicated veterinarian who has fallen for his share of interesting and beautiful wide-eyed creatures, but they’re usually covered in fur. He’s not prepared for Carly’s striking baby blues, and his attraction is undeniable even after a misconception on her part brings her claws out. But after removing a harmless kitten—which she incongruously names Killer—from her tote and taking the brunt of her misplaced sass, his fuse is lit.

Following a series of mishaps, misunderstandings, and false starts, Carly and Nolan’s romance blooms and they arrive at what they think is solid ground. But Nolan’s former fiancée and Carly’s ex-husband arrive on Kiss Key, bringing with them serious trouble including arson and an assault on Carly delivered with such cunning that she believes herself guilty of something unforgivable.

It will take Nolan’s unshakable faith in Carly, even when she has no faith left in herself, to uncover the truth and use it to find justice—for herself, for him, and the precious love they feared was lost forever.

For the lowdown on ALL the authors and stories in this boxset, click to this link from my last blog post: https://www.lisaricardclaro.com/new-release/

For today’s blog I thought it would be fun to empty my purse, “baring it all”, as it were. You’ll have to trust me on this, but I haven’t deliberately put items in my purse for this post, nor have I removed any, but in honor of the Naked Truth I’ll tell you everything I find in this purse-to-purse transition. I’m a little nervous about this, not gonna lie. Because what ridiculous thing is buried in there?!

The above is my favorite purse, a Stone Mountain cross-body bag, small and easy to carry while shopping. I’ve used it for two years, and it’s finally torn up on the inside, so I’m replacing it with this Relic, found at a secondhand store for only $10, and at that price I couldn’t pass it up. I LOVE the pineapples. Super cute, yes?

Now I’m transferring the stuff from my Stone Mountain bag into the Relic bag, and I haven’t cleaned it out in a while, so who knows? But we’re about to find out what’s in there. . . ready? Here goes:

Wallet, 2 Panera cards, 2 Tide pens, a paper clip, a large safety pin, business cards, Post-it pad, mermaid note cards, 7 pens, 2 lipsticks, 1 mascara, flushable moist towelettes, 1 moist towelette packet, 2 retractable measuring tapes (2??), loose change, old receipts, doctor appointment cards, 2 hair clips, a Beall’s card, 2 ibuprofen containers (both almost empty *sigh*), seashells (naturally), tissues, and a plastic army man (long story). And, according to the photo below, 1 adorable cat. (Luna snuck in, settling down after the allure of so many small items drew her attention. You can tell by the look on her face she’s deciding what to bat off the bed first.)

How did all this stuff fit into my little purse?

So, I’m a bit relieved not to have found too many wacky things though the multiples of common items is a tad disturbing. What do you suppose a psychiatrist would say about my apparent hoarding tendencies? As to the 7 pens, well . . . I can’t help it. I LOVE pens. And really, one can never have too many.