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 cafe in the ballroom much to Roberta's disgust. And when Debbie offers to help out in the cafe, 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 Cafe is a moving story of love lost and found.


PRAISE FOR THE BALLROOM CAFE

'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

Powerful and poignant, The Ballroom Cafe is a moving story of love lost and found.

About the Author
A leading journalist in Ireland for nearly thirty years, Ann O'Loughlin has covered all major news events of the last three decades. Ann spent most of her career with independent newspapers where she was Security Correspondent at the height of The Troubles, and was a senior journalist on the Irish Independent and Evening Herald. She is currently a senior journalist with the Irish Examiner newspaper covering legal issues. Ann has also lived and worked in India. Originally from the west of Ireland she now lives on the east coast with her husband and two children. Her debut novel The Ballroom Cafe was an eBook bestseller, and has sold over 220,000 copies to-date.

Reviews
'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



Book Information
ISBN 9781845029524
Author Ann O'Loughlin
Format Paperback
Page Count 336
Imprint Black and White Publishing
Publisher Bonnier Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 314g
Dimensions(mm) 197mm * 24mm * 128mm