Singles, take heart. A passel of new books has arrived to cheer, support and defend those who haven't yet followed their friends to the altar. And just in time for Valentine's Day.

Don't settle, these books argue, and don't wallow in regret. Enjoy your freedom.

As Leslie Talbot says in the subtitle of her book, "Singular Existence" (Citadel Press), "It's Better To Be Alone Than Wish You Were."

Talbot, who writes a blog called SingularExistence.com, attempts to cut through the sentimental dreams many women have not just of matrimony, but of motherhood, too.

Myth demolishing is also a goal of Bella DePaulo, a social psychologist and author of "Singled Out: How Singles Are Stereotyped, Stigmatized, and Ignored, and Still Live Happily Ever After" (St. Martin's). She analyzes recent books, articles, studies, etc., and finds widespread cultural bias against the unmarried.

No, she writes, singles aren't miserable and lonely.

"If you want to see fools rush in to provide well-meaning advice to hapless single people, buy a ticket for Valentine's Day," writes DePaulo, citing newspaper stories that seem to assume that being single on Feb. 14 is a tragedy.

As author Jen Schefft puts it in another book on this theme, "Better Single Than Sorry" (William Morrow), if you don't have a Valentine, "Act as if it's like any other day of the year — because it is."

"The Bridal Wave: A Survival Guide to the Everyone-I-Know-Is-Getting-Married Years" (Random House) offers "reality checks" for women who can come to feel like they're the only ones in the world not getting hitched. Authors Erin Torneo and Valerie Krause advise how to save money while springing for everyone's weddings, how to handle the "I've got big news" calls and how to deflect family questions about your love life.