Quick Synopsis – Magical-antique experts Amelia Tarrant and Caleb Sterling have been best friends forever, although lately each has begun secretly wishing for more than friendship. But when rumors about their relationship spread, they’re forced to fake being enemies to protect their reputations and keep their jobs. The resulting arguments spark havoc across Oxford University, and when they cause an explosion while fighting over a magical antique, it’s the final straw for their exasperated faculty head.

He dispatches them to a job in Cumbria where even they can’t get into trouble. Which proves just how wrong one man can be. In a stormbound old manor house, Amelia and Caleb face magical mayhem and rampaging ghosts that make the previous havoc look mild in comparison. Most troublesome of all, though, is the secret of how they feel about each other. When it comes to tackling deadly antiques, hiding the truth in their hearts could destroy them for real.

Song This Reminds Me Of –In My Arms by Matt Maeson

Publication Date – April 21, 2026

Bookshop Link – The Antiquarian’s Object of Desire by India Holton (If you use my link to purchase, I get a small commission)

Content Notes – There is a lot of sexism and misogyny in this book that would have been pretty typical to the time period. There is also a lot of classism especially in regard to servants.

Spicy Rating – 🌶️🌶️

Overall Rating – ⭐⭐⭐.5 out of 5

Review – There are two other books that are related to this one, but you don’t have to read the other two to understand this one. Or at least I didn’t read the other two and I got along just fine. I liked this book, I thought it was a cute friends-to-lovers story, and it had a very sweet ending. The story did switch between Amelia and Caleb’s points of view. I wish this had been delineated a little better. Sometimes it was a little unclear whose point of view the story was being told from.

Amelia and Caleb went to the same boarding school; they grew up together and considered themselves to be best friends. However, this is Victorian England and when Amelia and Caleb are caught hugging, they’re faced with the hard choice of Amelia leaving Oxford or pretending to hate each other. This incident happens before the novel, so we mostly hear the story as an aside. They choose to pretend to hate each other and are soon known for the famous rows and animosity. After an incident where they almost burn down an academic club, they’re banished to Cumbria to catalog a rich person’s private collection. Of course, they have chaperones and there is a game afoot as artifacts keep going missing.

The novel takes place over the course of several weeks….I think. I had a little bit of a hard time tracking the time in this novel. Some of that was because the characters were bored of the tedium of cataloging artifacts. Some are imbued with magic, but most are just a hoarder’s collection. The banter and tension between Caleb and Amelia is *chef’s kiss*. Their friendship felt lived in and really popped off the page. I also loved the juxtaposition of how Amelia is treated versus Caleb. Even though they’re caught hugging all punishment is put on Amelia. Even though they both fight all over Oxford, Amelia gets a reputation as a tyrant whereas Caleb is still seen as a charmer.

I didn’t love the magic in this book. So much of what they were investigating was just straight up guess work. When they found an artifact, they had to investigate what the artifact did which often led to destruction. It felt like there should have been some sort of link between what the artifact was and what it did. I also didn’t love how flippant both main characters were about the destruction that they caused. Caleb was born into the lower class, and you would think he would have more respect for people who had to clean up after him.

This was an okay novel. I don’t think I would read the other books in the series, but that’s just me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for the advanced copy, all opinions are my own.