The story in one page
A disgraced Belgian lieutenant named Werper stumbles upon the lost city of Opar, where he plans to plunder the ancient, stored wealth of the Flaming God. Meanwhile, Tarzan arrives in the city suffering from total amnesia after an injury. La, the high priestess, mistakes the amnesiac ape-man for her fated consort and attempts to enforce a union. Amidst the chaos of rituals, temple escapes, and cross-jungle pursuits, Werper makes off with a pouch of stolen gems. Tarzan must navigate his regained faculties while rescuing his wife, Jane, from raiders before finally confronting the consequences of the Belgian's desperate, lethal greed.
Who's who
- Tarzan
An amnesiac lord of the apes navigating lost city politics.
- Werper
A dishonored lieutenant driven to theft by envy and resentment.
- La
The high priestess of Opar seeking a husband at any cost.
- Jane Clayton
The wife who waits while navigating jungle peril and abduction.
- Mugambi
A loyal warrior who trades jewels for river gravel.
What it's really about
- Identity
- Forgetting one's name does not change one's savage reflexes.
- Greed
- Pockets full of jewels rarely help when one is lost.
Why it's memorable
- Tarzan realizing he speaks fluent ape even when he forgets English.
- A pouch of stolen jewels actually containing only useless river gravel.
The ending, explained
Spoilers — show the ending
The party discovers Werper’s skeleton in the jungle. They find the genuine gems inside his pouch, as the stones had been switched multiple times during the chaos.
For your book club
- Can an ape-man recover his humanity if he forgets who he is?
- Why does a priestess find an amnesiac more appealing than a normal man?