MTV Books births 16 and Pregnant YA novel — see the cover

MTV's 16 and Pregnant family is growing.

The docuseries, which premiered in 2009 and chronicles the lives of real teen moms, has already spawned multiple spin-offs — and now the network is birthing a new iteration: 16 & Pregnant the YA novel. The book will hit shelves in January 2023, and EW has the exclusive first look at the vibrant cover:

MTV Books 16 & Pregnant: A Novel by LaLa Thomas

Written by LaLa Thomas, 16 & Pregnant: A Novel follows two teen girls, Erykah and Kelly, whose young lives are disrupted by an unplanned pregnancy.

From the official synopsis:

Erykah was looking forward to junior year at East Prep High. She has a cute boyfriend, gets good grades, and has the best bestie. Money is tight, though that's nothing new in her world. But everything changes when she gets pregnant. Having a baby at sixteen was definitely not part of the plan. Kelly's plan was to dominate junior year — grade-wise and on the basketball court — and eventually get an athletic scholarship. It did not include helping her best friend through a pregnancy. But that's what best friends do, right? Besides, Kelly has every intention of being a good auntie. As the girls navigate the pregnancy, they'll learn some harsh realities about the world and be forced to make some huge decisions. They'll also discover a deep reserve of strength and compassion…for each other and themselves.

In addition to 16 & Pregnant, which is available for preorder now, MTV Books also announced two new franchises: MTV Fear kicks off with Infested by Angel Luis Colón, and the MTV Beach House series debuts with The Break-Up Vacation by Anna Gracia.

And we'd be remiss if we didn't mention Whalefall, an absolutely bonkers-sounding novel by Daniel Kraus, which the publisher describes thusly: "A scientifically accurate chronicle of one young man's struggle to survive after being swallowed by a sperm whale."

Scientifically accurate? Here's hoping the fact-checker got hazard pay.

Related content:

• Screen After Reading: Go behind-the-scenes of book adaptations like Anatomy of a Scandal

• Get ready for more Heartstopper with sneak peek images from the new yearbook comic

• 12 sizzling summer reads to heat up your beach days