Welcome to the Takeover + Review Blitz for A Brewed Awakening by Pepper Basham, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: A Brewed Awakening
Author: Pepper Basham
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: May 5, 2026
Genre: Small Town Contemporary Romance

Daphne dreams of Mr. Darcy. Finn serves up pints and rock music. Can opposites attract when a tea shop princess meets her pub-owning rival?

In the charming mountain town of Wisteria, North Carolina, Daphne Austen clings to tradition like cream to a scone. She’s built her life–and her late grandmother’s tearoom, Tea Thyme–around all things English: delicate china, Jane Austen novels, and the comforting predictability of routine. The only thing threatening her perfectly ordered world? The loud, aggravatingly handsome Brit opening a pub next door.

After his ex-wife broke his heart and his business partner nearly destroyed his career, Finn Dashwood packed up his six-year-old daughter and left England behind. He’s looking for a fresh start, and the last thing he needs is a fussy, tea-obsessed neighbor criticizing his every pint and playlist. It doesn’t matter that she’s ridiculously kind (to everyone else) and that his daughter is utterly fascinated by her. Finn’s heart is not open to being broken again.

But disagreements turn into prank wars and then a competition when a high-profile wedding needs a last-minute caterer. The townsfolk are thrilled–Wisteria hasn’t seen this much excitement since the county fair lost a goat.

When the wedding demands both sweet and savory fare, Daphne and Finn are forced to put down their swords and pick up their serving trays. Between burnt pastries, brewing tempers, trending hashtags (#SipsAndSpats, anyone?), and one very adorable little girl, rivalry soon gives way to reluctant friendship–and maybe something that feels suspiciously like chemistry.

Can a tea shop princess and a pub owner with a past mix their lives as seamlessly as clotted cream and jam . . . or will their differences keep them steeped in rivalry forever?

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Thomas Nelson | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Christianbook | BookBub | Bookshop 

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About the Author

Pepper Basham is an award-winning author who writes romance “peppered” with grace and humor. Writing both historical and contemporary novels, she loves to incorporate her native Appalachian culture and/or her unabashed adoration of the UK into her stories. She currently resides in the lovely mountains of southwestern VA, where she is a wife, mom to five great kids, a speech-language pathologist, and a lover of chocolate, jazz, hats, and Jesus.Connect with Pepper by visiting pepperdbasham.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

My Impressions

“Change had always felt hard. Life-alteringly hard. Goodbye hard. But with Granny encouraging her, she’d navigated and even grown through it. Yet maybe, just maybe, some changes could still be . . . good?”

Ooh, a great “everyone should read this” rom-com!! Pepper Basham, in A Brewed Awakening, mixes and blends together a small Blue Ridge Mountains town, a competition between a coffee-pub and atea shop, and two individuals who zealously guard their hearts. Never mind the great banter. Or that they share a shop wall. Or that there is a buzz of awareness between the too-handsome, insulting Brit (Finn) and the Austen fan and Anglophile ( Daphne). 

After Daphne’s grandmother dies and leaves her the shop, Daphne makes the business into a sort of shrine, keeping everything the same. Which doesn’t invite new business, which she desperately needs to survive. Daphne drools over a new car that reminds her of both her past and England. Then she meets the owner, Finn. Attracted by his drop-dead gorgeous looks and British accent, she is repelled by his sarcasm and cutting remarks. 

Eventually, a competition grows beyond the exchanged personal word to a verbal flirting and battle on social media. Because the two are close neighbors, they can’t help coming in contact with each other and find that they actually goad each other into their best professional space. 

When Daphne meets Finn’s six-year-old daughter, who has visible facial scars, a sweet protectiveness blooms in Daphne. Plus, she begins to see another, gentler, protective, and loving father side to Finn. A softer, more appealing dude than the gruff rejection that she has encountered thus far. She wants to open her heart… but her past has taught her that love is not permanent. 

A celebrity couple decide to get married in Wisteria, NC, ( said small town) and find themselves minus their planned caterer. They search for a local caterer, only to be torn between the two, Daphne or Finn. The whole town joins in the social media “Grub Wars” banter and chooses between “Team Tea” or “Team Coffee.” A bake-off during the Fall Fest is planned so the whole town can vote who the celebrity couple’s caterer will be. 

I loved just how wise and comforting Daphne is with Lucy. Daphne is also generous to a fault and creative when pushed outside her comfort zone. 

This book stands out to me for the banter, for the sweet vs. grumpy trope and enemies to lovers trope. But it especially wreaked havoc on my emotions as it recalls the 2024 Hurricane Helene (renamed in the story) that hit Asheville. I was fortunate enough, though visiting the SC upstate at the time, to be an hour away. I remember the aloneness, the fear, the darkness of days without power, having no idea what was going on in the rest of the area. But, where it was so devastating, in real life and in the novel, people survived on working together, faith, and hope amid the devastation. And a determination to rebuild. What a tribute to the area this story is, and I didn’t really expect it as the story flowed along. Definitely a must-read story penned by someone who lived the experience.

I received a copy of the book from JustRead Tours and NetGalley. I also bought my own copy. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables: 

“walls don’t just keep pain out. They keep possibility out too.” – Harry

“‘The world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are strong at the broken places.’” Finn quoting Hemingway

“People don’t always like differences or . . . the unexpected. It makes them uncomfortable.”

”He’d learned the hard way that love came with an expiration date…”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️

Superior!! A lovely Southern rom-com with a touching tribute to a tragedy. Fun and heart-rending.

Tour Giveaway

(2) winners will receive a signed copy of A Brewed Awakening, and winners choice of a Literary Beverage Mug or a Storming Castles mug!

Be sure to check out each stop on the tour for more chances to win. Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway began at midnight May 13, 2026 and lasts through 11:59 PM EST on May 20, 2026. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

Enter Giveaway

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!