16 Forever
-
- Pre-Order
-
- Expected Jan 6, 2026
-
- $10.99
Publisher Description
It’s the morning of Carter Cohen’s 16th birthday, and everything’s going his way.
He’s psyched and ready to get his driver’s license, his little brother’s not hogging the bathroom, and, man, something smells good for breakfast…
But when Carter bounds downstairs, Mom bursts into tears. It happened again. It’s Carter’s 16th birthday—for the sixth time. Every time he’s supposed to turn 17, he loops back a year. His memory gets wiped clean, his body ages backward—the rest of the world moves on, just not him.
Maggie Spear, on the other hand, has been dreading this day ever since she and Carter started dating. When she spies him in the halls and he doesn’t seem to know her at all, it’s obvious that it’s over between them. She can’t be in a relationship with someone who is just going to forget her again and again. Since Carter doesn’t remember that they’re together, then it’s probably better if she just pretends that they never were.
Except Carter senses that there’s more to their story than Maggie’s letting on, and Maggie’s keeping secrets of her own—but in the process of trying to let the other go, they find themselves falling in love all over again.
With Maggie soon leaving for college and Carter’s birthday quickly coming around again, will they be able to find a forever that isn’t stuck at 16?
Filled with tender moments, silly banter, and lots of teenage angst, 16 Forever is the latest YA page-turner from New York Times bestselling, award-winning author Lance Rubin.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A teen stuck in a time loop is forced to relive his 16th year while the world moves on without him in this convoluted speculative love story. When Carter Cohen wakes up on his 16th birthday, he has no idea that he's reliving this year for the sixth time. Once his 17th birthday arrives, his mind and body reset, leaving him confused and concerned about why nothing is the way he remembers: his parents seem older and tired, and his formerly younger brother is now in college. Forced to readjust to being 16 (again) and struggling to manage his—and everyone else's—surety that he has no future, Carter attempts to reconnect with friends he's forgotten about and seeks a cure for his condition. Along the way, he meets and falls back in love with his former girlfriend Maggie, despite others' warnings that their relationship is doomed. Rubin (Zed Moonstein Makes a Friend) spins a tale bordering on horror, as unnerving plotting outlines how Carter's curse affects both him and those who care for him. At times sorrowful and hopeful, it's an introspective story about grief, regret, and maturation disguised as a lighthearted romance that considers memory's impact on relationships and poses existential questions about personhood. Carter is white and Jewish. Ages 14–up.
