Jess, a romance set in South Africa during the Boer War, combines an adventure plot with a love-triangle. When Captain John Niel accepts a position working for Silas Croft, he must choose between the affections of his employer's two nieces, the blonde, sweet-tempered Bessie or the clever, dark haired Jess. Niel must also combat the villainous Anglo-Boer, Frank Muller, who wishes to marry Bessie against her wishes. Haggard considered Jess one of most depressing and autobiographical novels he authored, calling it “a living record of our shame in South Africa”.