The Beasts of Tarzan

In Short

When the villainous Nikolas Rokoff escapes prison and kidnaps Lord Greystoke’s infant son and wife, Tarzan is stranded unarmed on an isolated African island. To survive and track the abductors down the wild Ugambi River, the ape-man forms an extraordinary alliance with a ferocious panther and a pack of great apes. Bursting with relentless action, brutal jungle combat, and high-seas treachery, this third entry in the famous series has endured for over a century because it distills pulp adventure down to its purest, most visceral elements.

The Story

The fragile domestic life of John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, shatters when news arrives that his arch-enemy, the ruthless Nikolas Rokoff, has escaped from a French military prison. Knowing the villain intends to strike through his family, Tarzan rushes to safeguard his wife, Jane, and their infant son. His fears prove justified: Rokoff kidnaps the infant and lures both Tarzan and Jane into a trap aboard the steamer Kincaid. Tarzan is marooned without weapons or clothes on Jungle Island, while Jane remains imprisoned aboard the ship, ignorant of her husband's fate.

On the island, Tarzan’s primal instincts reassert themselves. He quickly works to tool primitive stone knives and wooden spears. Through strength, bravery, and shared kills, he achieves the unthinkable—dominating a tribe of great apes led by Akut and taming Sheeta, a deadly panther. Joining forces with Mugambi, a native warrior also wronged by the crew, Tarzan leads his beast-pack across the channel to the mainland in a crude dugout canoe to pursue the kidnappers.

Meanwhile, Jane escapes her captors and flees into the jungle, only to find the infant in her arms is not her own, but a substitute left by Rokoff, while her real child has been sent back to Europe under a false identity. She navigates treacherous native villages and fevered jungle trails, enduring immense hardship to survive. Behind her, Rokoff’s safari collapses into mutiny and superstitious terror as Tarzan’s terrible pack stalks them through the bush. The native porters and white sailors are driven mad by the roaring panther and giant ape-man hunting them down.

The pursuit culminates along the Ugambi River. Rokoff, shivering with terror as the flaming-eyed panther haunts his camps, attempts to board the Kincaid to escape, only to find the crew in open revolt. In the final chaos, Rokoff meets his end, and the doomed Kincaid catches fire and sinks after a massive explosion caused by his scheming partner, Paulvitch. Tarzan reunites with Jane and his loyal animal allies. Returning to England, they discover that their real son has been safely recovered by solicitors after his custodian betrayed the plot for gold. Freed forever from the menace of Rokoff, the Greystokes prepare to return to their beloved African estates alongside Mugambi.

How It Unfolds

The trap springs News of Rokoff’s escape from prison sends Tarzan racing back to London, but he is lured aboard the Kincaid and separated from his wife and child. He wakes in a dark cell while Rokoff plots his ultimate revenge.

Taming the island Left for dead on a remote shore, Tarzan crafts crude stone weapons and builds a fire to forge a hunting knife. He earns the respect of Akut's ape tribe and establishes an incredible hunting partnership with Sheeta the panther.

Crossing the channel Joined by the warrior Mugambi, Tarzan puts his terrifying pack into a single dugout canoe. They weather rough seas and terror-stricken apes to reach the African mainland in pursuit of the safari.

Terror in the bush Rokoff attempts to turn the native tribes against his pursuers, but Tarzan uses the screams of Sheeta and the assault of Akut's apes to break open enemy villages and rescue allies bound to the stake.

The substitute baby Jane escapes into the wilderness with a sick child, only to suffer a heart-wrenching realization when the fever clears: Rokoff has tricked her, leaving a dying infant while hiding her true son elsewhere.

Blood on the Ugambi The safari dissolves into mutiny, leaving Rokoff fleeing in terror from the relentless panther. When the Kincaid explodes in flames, the survivors take to the water, where final reckonings are paid.

Reunion and restoration Back in England, the Greystokes learn their true heir has been safely ransomed from Rokoff's accomplice, allowing the family to return to their African home in peace.

The People

• Tarzan (Lord Greystoke): Driven by an intense desire to protect his wife and child, he sheds his civilized persona to embrace his feral heritage. Armed only with raw intellect and jungle lore, he turns wild predators into a devoted army and triumphs over human malice.
• Jane Clayton: Tarzan’s brave wife, who refuses to break under Rokoff’s threats or the horrors of the wild. Her devotion to her child fuels a desperate trek through fever-ridden jungles and native villages, emerging as a fierce survivor in her own right.
• Nikolas Rokoff: A gaunt, vengeful villain driven entirely by spite and cowardice. He uses kidnapping, deceit, and mutinous sailors to inflict agony on Tarzan, only to be reduced to a trembling wreck when hunted by Tarzan's beasts.
• Mugambi: A formidable native warrior who suffers at the hands of Rokoff’s crew. He joins Tarzan’s party as a trusted human ally, fighting side-by-side with the ape-man and helping navigate the dangers of the Ugambi.
• Akut & Sheeta: The wild leaders of Tarzan's jungle force—Akut the ape chief and Sheeta the deadly panther. Bound by mutual respect and shared kills, they lend their terrifying strength to Tarzan's campaign of retribution.

In Its Own Voice

“It was but a return to the old existence of constant bloodshed and danger—to the hunting and the being hunted.”

Tarzan embraces the savage reality of his island exile, knowing that every moment requires total vigilance.

“As he approached the mighty cat the creature stepped warily to one side, and the ape-man brushed past him within a foot of the dripping jaws, and as he continued on through the forest the panther followed on behind him, as a hound follows at heel.”

A tense mutual understanding forms between man and predator, laying the foundation for their extraordinary hunting bond.

“He saw her stagger to her feet, holding the baby at arm’s length from her, her eyes glued in horror upon the little chubby face and twinkling eyes.”

Jane suffers a crushing moment of revelation as she discovers the baby she rescued is not her missing child.

What It's Really About

Beneath its pulsating sequence of escapes and animal battles, the novel explores the thin line separating human civilization from primordial nature. When refined society fails to protect his family from human cruelty, Tarzan strips away his aristocratic title and returns to the law of the jungle. The story argues that the natural world—though bloody and brutal—possesses a clean, honest logic that stands in sharp contrast to the deceit and cowardice of civilized villains like Rokoff. Loyalty in this wild realm is earned through strength, respect, and shared survival rather than contract or coin.

Why Read It Today

This work represents early 20th-century pulp adventure at its absolute peak. It delivers a fast, unpretentious narrative where the action barely pauses for breath between jungle fights, maritime mutinies, and animal-led assaults. Modern readers will easily get swept up in the thrilling conceit of Tarzan commanding a pack of wild beasts against heavily armed foes.

Readers should be prepared for period-typical depictions of native African tribes and melodramatic villainy that reflect the pulp serial style of 1915. The prose is direct and unadorned, favoring raw pacing over complex stylistic flourish. If you enjoy classic adventure stories where physical courage, wild nature, and unbreakable family bonds conquer all odds, this wild ride through the African bush will leave a lasting mark.