Sisters Ella and Roberta O'Callaghan live in separate wings of their crumbling Irish mansion. They haven't spoken for decades, torn apart by a dark family secret from their past, and only communicate through the terse and bitter notes they leave for each other in the hallway. Debbie, an American woman, is searching for her birth mother. She has little time left but as she sets out to discover who she really is and what happened to her mother, she is met by silence and lies at the local convent. With the bank threatening, Ella tries to save the family home by opening a café in the ballroom much to Roberta's disgust. And when Debbie offers to help out in the café, the war between the sisters intensifies. But as Debbie finally begins to unravel the truth, she uncovers an adoption scandal that will rock both the community and the warring sisters. POWERFUL AND POIGNANT, _THE BALLROOM CAFÉ_ IS A MOVING STORY OF LOVE LOST AND FOUND. PRAISE FOR _THE BALLROOM CAFÉ_ _'Secrets emerge, there's a whopper of a twist and this unabashed tear-jerker ends with a well-earthed, well-calculated emotional finale.'_ __THE IRISH TIMES _'A moving tale of loss, love and redemption.'_ __BELLA MAGAZINE _'Deftly written, moving and courageous.'_ __THE SUNDAY TIMES _'Slow-marching, romantic prose draws us into an old world that is rustic, genteel, quaint...[but] scandals lie in wait.' _ __IRISH INDEPENDENT _'Highly engaging debut you will want to dive into.'_ __SUNDAY INDEPENDENT, Ireland _'A lovely first novel.'_ __CATHY KELLY, bestselling author. _'A warm and engaging story in a unique and original setting. I loved journeying through the lives of these fascinating characters. A beautifully drawn, skilfully written, well-researched novel.'_ __KATE KERRIGAN, New York Times bestselling author of _The Ellis Island_ Trilogy _'A lovely story of two women with the courage to confront the injustices of the past, bringing light to a dark corner of Ireland's recent history.'_ __KATHLEEN MACMAHON, bestselling author of _This Is How It Ends_