HAGELIN: What Jane Austen can tell single women

• “Drama is not the same thing as love.” (Who really wants a Kardashian-style relationship?)

• “Keep your distance, not to increase his love by suspense - but so you can make up your mind about a man while you can still see him clearly.” (An important point for a generation that too easily moves from the bar to the bedroom to sharing an apartment.)

At the end of each chapter, Ms. Kantor frames questions to help readers assess their own relationships. In easy-to-read bullet points, she helps women probe the strengths and weaknesses of their current relationships. And in true Austen style, she urges them to have the boldness to “arrange” their own marriages - to choose wisely and decide fearlessly if a relationship is likely to secure a happy future.

And the Jane Austen promise? That love and happiness go together: Women can live “happily ever after” marriages if they recognize, expect and pursue true love.

Share “The Jane Austen Guide to Happily Ever After” with your daughters - and all the single women you know.

• Rebecca Hagelin can be reached at rebecca@howtosave yourfamily.com.