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Who Hears the Waters’ Call by Sophia St Germain – Book Review

Book Details

Who Hears the Waters’ Call by Sophia St Germain

Series: Zeal of the North #1

Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Romance

Kindle Edition

Published: July 22, 2026

Goodreads rating: 4.70/5

My rating: 4/5

Cover of Who Hears the Waters' Call by Sophia St Germain. White lettering reading "Zeal of the North, Who Hears the Waters' Call" with the authors name and a stylised border overlaying an image of two people, a man and a woman, facing the water with mountains and a viking ship in the distance, and a purple and red aurora dancing in the sky.

Blurb of Who Hears the Waters’ Call by Sophia St Germain

Quoted from Goodreads:

From Amazon best selling Author Sophia St. Germain comes a thrilling new series, Zeal of the North, in which a Viking heir must attend the king’s brutal war academy before she is sent to conquer the world.

The eldest daughter of the chieftain of their village, Elvara Sweengard was brought up to do one thing: marry someone of equal rank to further her family’s rule. But when the ships in their village go quiet and magic vanishes, the unthinkable is confirmed: her father and brother have been slaughtered on their way to the Hird—the king’s elite war academy—where her brother was to claim his mantle as the next chieftain.

Elvara is now the only thing standing between her people and extinction. She must take her brother’s empty seat at the academy and earn a rune from the gods to restore the magic they lost—but first, she must survive both the ruthless trials of the Hird and the other initiates vying for her place, all without her family’s tragedy being revealed.

As the trials begin, she soon learns that they are not the only dangers she faces. Enemies lurk both inside and outside the realm. She needs to decide who is friend and who is foe before it’s too late—something that becomes far more complicated when the battle bond meant to tie her to her childhood guard is compromised and she instead finds herself tethered to a six-foot-five Viking warrior who would sooner put an axe through her heart than see a crown on her head.

Enemies-to-lovers, magic, slow-burn, found family, forced proximity, plot twists, betrayal, trials, political intrigue, morally grey characters, mythology.

My Review

This was an intense read from start to finish, keeping me constantly on the edge of my seat.

Who Hears the Waters’ Call is a Viking-inspired fantasy romance that follows Elvara as she navigates a brutal world of rival clans, ancient magic, dangerous alliances and secrets that could cost her everything.

Elvara is an absolute badass. Despite everything that’s thrown her way, she refuses to break, and I admired her strength and resilience. The found family vibes between the heirs added an extra layer to the story, raising the stakes with every challenge they faced.

I loved watching Elvara and Darcke’s relationship develop naturally over the course of the book. This is a true enemies-to-lovers slow-burn romance and their growing trust and connection felt authentic and well earned.

The standout for me though, was the world-building. The author has created a rich and immersive world. It took me a while to get used to all of the terminology, but once I did, the story became much easier to follow.

The only real issue I had was with the final plot twist and the ending as a whole. It felt a little too convoluted and was hard to wrap my head around, leaving me confused rather than surprised. That said, I was glad the book didn’t end on a major cliffhanger and I’m keen to continue the series and see what’s in store for these characters.

“Honor was for those who could afford to die. I was choosing the power of those who refused to. I might not be a hero in the end. But I was a survivor.”

Happy Reading x

Thank you to the author for providing me with a digital copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

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