Welcome to the Blog Tour for Restoring Hope by Philippa Cleall, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About The Book
Title: Restoring Hope
Series: Restored from Ashes #1
Author: Philippa Cleall
Publisher: Ark House Press
Release Date: October 31, 2025
Genre: Contemporary Christian Fiction
Can she find safety and belonging, before the past finds her?
After escaping an abusive marriage, Hope Elkins returns to the quiet town of Wombat Valley to reopen her late grandmother’s café, The Hearth—not to chase a dream, but to rebuild her life.
Drawn in by the scent of wood-fired pizza and the warmth of old and new faces, Hope begins to find more than comfort within the café’s walls. As The Hearth fills with stories and second chances, she forms unlikely bonds with others—Ruby, a fiercely guarded teen; Nova, a young mother on the run; and Joe, the gentle local vet carrying grief of his own.
With the support of her new community, Hope begins to heal and is gently drawn back to the faith she thought she’d left behind. But when a charming, dangerous figure from her past resurfaces, she must decide whether to stand firm in the life she’s begun to rebuild, or risk losing it all.
Restoring Hope is a tender, uplifting story of resilience, rediscovery, and the quiet strength found in faith, friendship, and a place to belong.
Excerpt
As the evening drew to a close, Eve brought out a shallow bowl filled with smooth river stones and passed it around the circle.
“You don’t have to take one,” she said. “But if it helps, these are a reminder. That healing takes time, and that the hard places in life you’ve survived have actually shaped you into something strong and beautiful, even when you feel worn thin.”
Each woman took a stone.
Hope rolled hers in her palm. It was cool and grounding, its weight oddly reassuring.
Eve lifted a cup filled with metallic ink markers. “If you feel ready, I invite you to write a word on your stone. Just one. A name you sense God might be speaking over you. Something true. Something healing. You can take it home and keep it visible. Let it remind you of who you really are.”
The women each selected a marker. One wrote “Free”. Another, “Seen”. A third, with trembling fingers, carefully wrote “Whole”.
Hope waited.
Watching them, she felt unsure. It felt too intimate, too exposing. So simple, but so weighty.
The silver pen hovered in her hand.
A word came. Unexpected. But steady. “Treasured.”
Not looked down upon.
Not just tolerated.
Valuable.
Wanted. Loved because she existed. Not for what she did or didn’t do.
Her throat tightened. She pressed the pen down and slowly wrote the word, her hand steadying as she shaped each letter.
PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Author’s Website | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop | BookBub
More in This Series
About The Author
Philippa Cleall is a Children’s and Family Counsellor and volunteer Court Chaplain on the south coast of NSW, in Australia. She has a heart for seeing communities become more trauma informed so they can care for those hurting with greater wisdom, compassion, grace, and truth.
Connect with Philippa by visiting philippacleall.com.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will receive a $25 B&N gift card + a ‘Kangaroo Valley’ souvenir prize pack from Australia!
(1) additional winner will also receive a ‘Kangaroo Valley’ souvenir prize pack!
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight August 31, 2026 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on September 7, 2026. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only for gift card. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.
Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!
I liked the excerpt.
You are a new author to me. Congratulations on your beautiful book.
Thank You for the review.
Marion
thank you for sharing about Restoring Hope today!
Pretty cover.
Great excerpt!
I like the excerpt and the genre!