Kate Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 Synopsis: A wonderfully warm and heartfelt debut from a stunning new talent. Everyone needs a guardian angel! Some people wait their whole lives to find their soul mates. But not Holly and Gerry. Childhood sweethearts, they could finish eachother's sentences and even when they fought, they laughed. No one could imagine Holly and Gerry without each other. Until the unthinkable happens. Gerry's death devastates Holly. But as her 30th birthday looms, Gerry comes back to her. He's left her a bundle of notes, one for each of the months after his death, gently guiding Holly into her new life without him, each note signed 'PS, I Love You'. As the notes are gradually opened, and as the year unfolds, Holly is both cheered up and challenged. The man who knows her better than anyone sets out to teach her that life goes on. With some help from her friends, and her noisy and loving family, Holly finds herself laughing, crying, singing, dancing -- and being braver than ever before. Life is for living, she realises -- but it always helps if there's an angel watching over you. Holly is lucky; she found her soul mate when she was young. Except she is unlucky - he dies young of a brain tumour. Her life is ripped apart. What is she going to do? Her husband has dead. Yet her mother is holding a letter for her, one from Gerry. There is a note for every month of the rest of the year, which will help her carrying on living. This is a well written, touching book. To lose your u at a young age must be horrendous, and that is how Ahern writes it. It is so sad, very heartbreaking. Ahern looks at what losing your spouse does to you, how relationships change, who are your real friends, and how you can keep going. I loved the idea of notes, and everything Gerry set up for her to help her. What a lovely thing to do. It was so beautiful that he was there supporting her through these few lines a few.Ahern's writing is gripping and draws you into the story. I felt the emotions Holly was feeling, and could have cried along with her. I don't think I have a favourite character in this book. Everyone was well written and I liked how they developed over the year. It was interesting to see how Gerry's death affected everyone. It was good to see how Ahern remembered the other characters and incorporated their grief in the book too. It is important to note that not all the book is sad, and there are moments of joy, fun and laughter. Ahern looks at a range of emotions and the rollercoaster of grief. I really enjoyed this book. It is chick-lit, but it explores a hard issue. It did not take long to read this book - it was just a good novel. 9/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephanie2008 Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 This is one of my favourite books too. I agree with you that every character is really well written. I really love some of the supporting characters, such as Sharon and John, and Denise. It's such a heartwrenching story, that she becomes a widow at such a young age. But it's told really well and I laughed and cried throughout it I agree with you Kate and would also give this 9/10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuggleMagic Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I read this quite a while back and I remember really enjoying it. I should watch the film really to refresh my memory of it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rach.at.the.disco Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I love this book and have read it numerous times now. In fact just this morning I finished reading it again (I've lost count of how many times I've read it). It does make me cry everytime I read it though . It's such a shame the film version is an awful adaptation . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MuggleMagic Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I love this book and have read it numerous times now. In fact just this morning I finished reading it again (I've lost count of how many times I've read it). It does make me cry everytime I read it though . It's such a shame the film version is an awful adaptation . is the film terrible then? I hate it when that happens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephanie2008 Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I didn't like the film very much. I think it's because I enjoyed the book so much that I just don't like the adaptation. My favourite scenes weren't in and there wasn't enough about the supporting characters for me (although I understand that they have to reduce it). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fi. Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 I loved the book and actually just got the film to watch - should I not bother? It's one of those books you can reread time & time again and still end up sobbing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexiepiper Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 I love this book and have read it numerous times now. In fact just this morning I finished reading it again (I've lost count of how many times I've read it). It does make me cry everytime I read it though . It's such a shame the film version is an awful adaptation . Totally agree, I loved the book, though the film was shockingly bad, which is such a shame because it had the potential to be great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Great review Kate, it is a lovely book, I have read it a few times and I agree with everyone who did not like the film, it was not the best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottishbookworm Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 This is one of my favourite books too. I agree with you that every character is really well written. I really love some of the supporting characters, such as Sharon and John, and Denise. It's such a heartwrenching story, that she becomes a widow at such a young age. But it's told really well and I laughed and cried throughout it I agree with you Kate and would also give this 9/10. it's my favourite book too! I give it a 10/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 I absolutely love this book. The film version is awful though, I felt that it ripped the heart and soul out of the book, just my opinion though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amethyst Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Interesting comments about the film there! I watched the film a few weeks back and started crying half an hour in and didn't stop until well after the end. After watching the film, I bought the book (I usually do it the other way around) so after reading what everyone has written here, I'll probably not actually be able to read it through constant blurry eyes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
welshchick30 Posted November 20, 2009 Share Posted November 20, 2009 this book is one of my favourites and made me cry...not many books do that to me. i think the film was rubbish compared to the book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AbielleRose Posted November 21, 2009 Share Posted November 21, 2009 (edited) this book is one of my favourites and made me cry...not many books do that to me. i think the film was rubbish compared to the book I completely agree. The best part of the movie is that it made me want to go read the book! This is one of my favorite books. It is so hard to find a beautifully written unique romance like this. I think why I like it so much is because it dosn't remind me of any other book out there. It is completely it's own (or at least compared to what I have read. ) Though I cried through most of the book, my favorite scene was her birthday. Edited November 21, 2009 by CaliLily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LindseyandMatthew Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 I read this quite a while ago and I loved it! I haven't seen the film though yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kate Posted December 7, 2009 Author Share Posted December 7, 2009 I preferred the book although I did like the fact that for their holiday they returned to Ireland - keeping within some of the roots of the book. However, it was the film that made me cry not the book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nightwish Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 I've almost finished the book now and I would say it has only made me cry one or two times, but it really has made me laugh a lot! I am really enjoying it, I just hope the ending isn't a let down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shirleyz Posted December 17, 2009 Share Posted December 17, 2009 I have to agree with Kate - possibly it was because I watched the film before reading the book (although I usually tend to prefer the book over the film) - I was sobbing through the film, but found the book 2-dimensional in comparison... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missybct Posted January 30, 2010 Share Posted January 30, 2010 I read this back in 2004 and remember being captivated by the storyline - such a good premise! The film was awful though, and it's a shame they couldn't stick to the original location of the book. I re-read PS I Love You last year and wasn't as fond as I was before, perhaps due to the film ruining it slightly, or because I had read it before. I'd give it a 6.5/10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enigmatic Nelly Posted February 1, 2010 Share Posted February 1, 2010 I personally came across this book after i had seen the movie based on the same when my friend recommended it to me. It was later that i realized its actually based on a book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and suggest it to each of my pals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kate2962 Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 I have read this book and loved it - I have not seen the film but a friend bought me the DVD for christmas so I will be watching it soon but I have heard it isnt as good as the book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vicky_notts Posted February 12, 2010 Share Posted February 12, 2010 Ive never read it but heard all the hype about it.Tesco has a box set on for for this with 2 or 3 others for around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlotte Posted April 7, 2010 Share Posted April 7, 2010 It is an amazing book. It draws you in and once your start reading it you cant stop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soljerster Posted June 1, 2010 Share Posted June 1, 2010 It is amazing. It was definetly a book I could not put down. Sad thing is, if anything ever happened to my husband, I could see him doing that exact same thing for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soso Posted July 28, 2010 Share Posted July 28, 2010 i would say it was an average book i guess though i loved the idea of him writing those letters for her . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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