A Night in Terror Tower

A Night in Terror Tower is the twenty-seventh book in the original Goosebumps book series, and the first book in the Terror Tower saga. It was first published in 1995. It was followed-up by a sequel titled Return to Terror Tower, which is the second special edition in the Give Yourself Goosebumps gamebook series.

Both the original 1995 and 2009 Classic Goosebumps cover illustrations show the Lord High Executioner coming down a flight of stairs holding an axe.

Blurb
ALL LOCKED UP AND NO PLACE TO GO!

Sue and her brother, Eddie, are visiting London when they run into a little problem. They can't find their tour group. Still, there's no reason to panic. No way their tour guide would just leave them. All alone. In a gloomy old prison tower. No way they'd get locked inside. After dark. With those eerie sounds. And a strange dark figure who wants them...dead.

Plot
Siblings Sue and Eddie have been sightseeing in London. Since their parents are at a conference, the kids are by themselves. The siblings go to Terror Tower, where they are led through the old building in a tour group.

The tour guide introduces the group to the "tower room", a place where the prince and princess — Edward and Susannah of York — were locked away. Sue and Eddie inspect the room so intently that they don't realize their tour group has left. They begin descending the tower stairs, but they run into a man who is dressed in black — presumably an executioner — and carrying three white stones. The kids dodge the man and begin running down the stairs. The siblings are eventually chased into a tunnel, and the man catches up to them. However, the man is attacked by a swarm of rats, allowing the kids to escape. They find a ladder that takes them out of the tunnel and into Terror Tower's parking lot.

The kids are stopped by a guard, and he calls the kids a taxi. The kids are driven to the Barclay Hotel, but — when Sue tries to pay — the driver refuses to accept the strange coins Sue offers. Sue is confused as to why her parents would give her money that wasn't standard. The kids say their parents will pay, and the driver allows them to enter the hotel, telling them he'll catch them if they aren't back in a few minutes. The kids go to the room where they think their parents are staying, but they learn the room is empty.

Sue and Eddie head to the front desk. The man behind the desk says he can help the kids if they provide their last names, but the siblings are unable to remember that. The kids go to the hotel restaurant, but — seeing the taxi driver — walk in, the kids sneak into a dark hallway. Sadly, Eddie and Sue are reunited with the man in black. The man demands that Eddie give something back, and the boy begrudgingly gives back the three stones. Evidently, Eddie had swiped the items when they were in the tunnel. The man places the stones in the palm of his own hand and begins chanting. Suddenly, everything begins to change around the siblings.

The kids find themselves alone in an old hallway with candles on the wall. The siblings hear voices, which they follow. The kids find a crowd of people who are feasting by firelight and dressed in old-fashioned robes. Sue asks a man for help, but he — and, eventually, everyone in the room — begins staring at the siblings in disbelief. A man declares that he recognizes the kids, but the kids run away, confused.

Once the kids are outside, they find that it is somehow daytime — even though it had been dark when they entered the hotel. The kids also notice that there are no modern buildings or cars. After stopping to ask a local boy for help, Sue turns back to find that her brother is gone. Sue is spotted by the executioner, but she runs away. Sue approaches a woman and pays her — using the same coins from earlier — in exchange for a place to a hide. The woman rushes Sue inside and hides her in a large basket, but the woman promptly ushers the executioner inside and brings him to Sue. The woman also refers to the man as the Lord High Executioner. Since the basket is latched, the executioner is able to transport Sue back to Terror Tower. Soldiers carry Sue to the top room of the tower. There, Sue finds Eddie, and he admits that he was also kidnapped.

A man with white hair walks in. The man introduces himself as Morgred, the king's sorcerer. Morgred reveals that Sue and Eddie are Princess Susannah and Prince Edward of York. Morgred sent the kids to the future and wiped their memories to protect them from being executed. The kids' uncle killed their parents and planned on killing them in order to take the throne. Morgred used his three white stones — and the chant, "Movarum, Lovaris, Movaris" — to send the kids to the future, but the Lord High Executioner stole the stones and used them to hunt the duo. While Morgred once again has his stones, he can't send the kids into the future because their uncle would kill him in retaliation.

Edward steals the stones from Morgred and begins performing the chant. After a moment, Susannah notices that they are standing before a tour group. Morgred has also been brought with the kids; they made sure to take him in order to prevent him from being executed. Susannah and Edward agree to call themselves Sue and Eddie respectively; Morgred chooses to call himself Mr. Morgan and will act as the kids' father from then on.

Reprints and rereleases
The Classic Goosebumps reprint was released as a tie-in to the twelfth Goosebumps HorrorLand book, The Streets of Panic Park.

Differences

 * The Classic Goosebumps reprint changes the twentieth century into the twenty-first century.
 * "round window" is changed to "square window"
 * "solemn" is changed to "somber". This is likely because "solemnly" is used a few sentences later, and this was to fix redundancy.
 * "smooth floor" is changed to "sleek floor".
 * "shacks" is changed to "cottages"

Differences

 * In the UK, this is the twenty-fifth book in the original series.
 * In France, this is the nineteenth book in the series.
 * In the French Canadian release, Sue is named "Annie".
 * Eddie is named "Theo".
 * In the Portuguese adaptation of the story there are some notable differences:
 * Sue and Eddie Morgan are called "Susana and Eduardo Matoso."
 * The Lord High Executioner is called "Lorde Carrasco-Mor."

TV series
A Night in Terror Tower was adapted into a two-part episode of the Goosebumps TV series. It is the sixteenth (part one) and seventieth (part two) episode of season one.

Trivia

 * The premise of two heirs to the English throne mysteriously vanishing is actually based on true events. In 1483, Richard III placed his two nephews, Edward V and Richard, Duke of York, in the Tower of London (then a palace) and were never seen again. It is not known what happened to the two young princes, but most rumors say they were killed.
 * According to R.L. Stine, early drafts of the book featured many more scenes where the protagonists were running away. Stine's editors thought that was "boring" and that the characters should occasionally stop to catch their breath. As a result, Stine reworked the book to feature less running.
 * According to Tim Jacobus, this was one of his least favorite covers due to it being rushed. Due to time constraints, Jacobus had to finish the work in one thirty-hour session. However, he doesn't think anyone else would notice how rushed the work is.
 * The concept of someone from the past being sent to the present to protect them from being killed would later be used in an episode of R. L. Stine's The Haunting Hour: The Series, called Night of the Mummy.
 * This is the first Goosebumps book to feature time travel. Coincidentally, time travel would also be the central plot of in the next book, The Cuckoo Clock of Doom.
 * This is one of the few Goosebumps books where the book's twist does not occur in the final chapter.
 * It's also one of the few books that have a happy ending.
 * When the Classic Goosebumps version of this book was printed, the cover art was erroneously mirrored.
 * This is the only book in the original series to get a Give Yourself Goosebumps sequel.
 * The back tagline is a pun on the phrase 'all dressed up and nowhere to go'.
 * The actress who portrayed Sue in the American audio book also portrayed Sabrina Mason in the audio book of The Haunted Mask II. This is similar how Kathryn Short portrayed both characters in the TV episodes.
 * The blurb on the back of the original book is in a different font from the other original books.

References in other Goosebumps media

 * The Lord High Executioner appears as a background monster in the film Goosebumps.
 * A book called "Terror Tower" appears on a shelf in Monsters at Midnight.
 * The Lord High Executioner appears in Goosebumps HorrorTown.
 * In  Escape from Horrorland (video game), this book's original cover was used as a card in a matching mini-game.