A novel written in 2004 by Cecelia Ahern about a young woman, Holly, dealing with the death of her beloved husband Gerry. Distraught and depressed, Holly withdraws from family and friends until she receives a cake with a message, sent by her deceased husband. The cake is the first of several letters—all ending in P.S. I Love You—which seemingly seem to keep coming from Gerry after his death to help her push forward to the future.
Made into a film in 2007, starring Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow and Kathy Bates, which moves the setting to Lower Manhattan.
In 2019, it got a sequel novel, Postscript.
Tropes in the film:
- Adapted Out:
- In the movie, Holly's family consists of her mother and her younger sister, while her father left years ago. In the novel, however, her parents are still Happily Married, she has two older brothers, her younger sister, her younger brother and a few nieces and nephews. All four of Holly's siblings have minor subplots that weave into Holly's story as she gets through the first year without Gerry.
- Also in the book is Daniel's ex-girlfriend, Laura. With whom, he gets back together with when it's clear Holly isn't ready for a relationship.
- The new job Holly gets. In the movie she starts designing shoes, while in the book she works at a magazine.
- Alternative Foreign Theme Song: The Japanese version of P.S. I Love You has Chiisana Inori
by Hideaki Tokunaga as its theme song. - Cheerful Funeral: Gerry planned his own memorial service while he was ill. He wanted it to be a celebration of life instead of a somber occasion. Consequently, the service includes some lively music from the Pogues, plenty of alcohol, and several of Gerry's friends sharing funny stories about him.
- Better as Friends: Holly and Daniel decide this at the end of the movie.
- Dead Guy Junior: In the book, Sharon and John plan on naming their son Gerry.
- Dead Man Writing: The book/movie revolves around this entire concept.
- Disappeared Dad: Holly's father.
- Happily Married: Holly and Gerry until his death.
- The Hero Dies: Gerry himself. The audience knows this from the start.
- Mess of Woe: After Gerry dies, Holly stops leaving the house, eschews bathing or cleaning up the piling trash and dishes in favor of slumping around in her dead husband's shirts, reenacting old movies line-by-line. The entire point of Gerry's letters is to help her start to live again.
- Moving Beyond Bereavement: All about the trope. Knowing he was dying, the main character's husband wrote her a series of letters where he reaffirmed his love for her and gave her advice to help her cope with widowhood. The novel is all about her receiving these letters during the year that follows his death. He even encouraged her in them to find love again (though by the end of the novel, she ultimately decides she's not ready for a relationship yet).
- Romancing the Widow: Daniel and William.
- Reunion Kiss: Holly once had made a bet with Gerry that if she happened to meet him again by chance, she would return his jacket. Sometime later, by luck, she entered the pub where he was singing and he swept her off her feet for a kiss.
- Reverse Psychology: Gerry convinces Holly to sing karaoke by telling the audience that she would never have the courage to do so.
- Serenade Your Lover: Gerry sings Galway Girl to Holly.
- Ship Tease: There were some moments between Holly and William a childhood friend of Gerry's. Also at the end, Holly's mother and William's father.
- Test Kiss:
- Holly and her friend Daniel kiss before pulling away and laughing and claiming it felt more like kissing a sister.
- Holly's friend Denise asks a few questions when she is interested in a guy and then kisses him. Hilariously inverted when this was how her future husband met her.
- Title Drop: Occurred at the end of every single letters/messages from Gerry.
