12 h 34 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 12 h 34 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
On a lonely Transvaal farm, love takes root while a powerful neighbour and a divided country threaten the household.
In H. Rider Haggard’s Jess, John Niel is a quiet former soldier who farms with Silas Croft at Mooifontein. Croft’s nieces, Jess and Bessie, share their home. Jess is shy and deeply loyal; Bessie is brighter and more open. As Niel falls in love with one sister, the farm’s quiet life faces a growing threat.
Frank Muller, a wealthy Boer neighbour, is used to getting his way. His interest in the sisters brings menace close to home. Beyond the farm, resentment of British rule pushes the Transvaal toward war. Niel’s devotion to the sisters and his older partner comes under pressure, while Croft hopes to preserve peace in a land pulled apart by divided loyalties.
What you’ll discover
- A quiet man's devotion Follow an honest farmer whose love and loyalty face repeated tests.
- Two sisters under threat Meet reserved, courageous Jess and open-hearted Bessie as danger reaches their home.
- Menace behind friendly manners Watch Frank Muller’s neighbourly visits reveal a proud man determined to have his way.
- A country nearing war Explore a Transvaal where political resentment presses against the hopes of one household.
- Love on the veldt Experience a slowly growing romance alongside frontier danger and difficult demands of loyalty.
Who will love it
For readers who love Victorian adventure with a love story at its heart, and anyone curious about the Transvaal in the years of the first Boer War.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A lonely farm and two sisters
- A Boer suitor with a dark side
- Love grows in a quiet heart
- A country sliding toward war
- What the story is really about
- How Haggard tells it
Who’s who
- John NielA quiet, honest former soldier turned farmer who is torn between loyalty to his partner and love for one of the sisters.
- JessThe serious, shy and deep-feeling sister, whose reserve hides strong loyalty and courage.
- BessieJess's brighter, more open sister, whose charm draws people to her and who finds herself in the middle of danger.
- Silas CroftThe English owner of Mooifontein and uncle of the sisters, who hopes to keep the peace in a divided land.
- Frank MullerA powerful and proud Boer neighbour who wants his way and becomes the chief threat to the household.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
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- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 12 h 34 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Read and hear Jess in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Jess
by H. Rider Haggard · 1887
On a Transvaal farm, John Niel and two sisters face a dangerous neighbour as love and loyalty meet the threat of war.
Medium level10–20 hours to read25 languages
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In short
Jess is an adventure novel by H. Rider Haggard, published in 1887.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A lonely farm and two sisters
The story opens on a farm in the Transvaal called Mooifontein, a name that means pretty fountain. It is home to Silas Croft, an Englishman who has made a quiet life there. His partner is John Niel, a former army captain who has come to the farm. Niel is steady and reserved.
In this settled household live two young women, nieces of Silas Croft. They are sisters, but they are very different. Jess is serious, thoughtful and shy, with a deep and watchful nature. Bessie is brighter and more openly charming, and she wins people over at once.
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What is Jess by Rider Haggard about?
It is a novel set in the Transvaal around the first Boer War. A farmer named John Niel, two sisters and a dangerous Boer neighbour are caught between love, loyalty and the growing conflict in the country.
When was Jess written and is it a true story?
Haggard published it in 1887. It is fiction, but it draws on his own years in the Transvaal and on the real tensions that led to the first Boer War.
Who is Frank Muller in Jess?
Muller is a wealthy and forceful Boer neighbour of the farm at Mooifontein. He wants one of the sisters for himself and is the main danger to the household.
The author
H. Rider Haggard
1856–1925 · English adventure novelist
Henry Rider Haggard (1856–1925) was an English novelist. He was born in Norfolk, lived in southern Africa from 1875 to 1881, and later settled in Norfolk. He wrote King Solomon’s Mines (1885), She (1887), and Beatrice (1890). He also wrote about agriculture and rural life. He died in London.
More by H. Rider Haggard
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