Crescentville Haunting, by M.N. Bennet

Crescentville Haunting is the debut novel from M.N. Bennett, a great mix of paranormal romance elements and urban fantasy, centered around themes such as self-acceptance and discovery, all of this while writing an excellent metaphor about the situations many members of the LGTBI+ collective experience sometimes; a really brave novel with an engaging plot.

Logan was determined to have a year far from the paranormal things, and far from Henry, his ex-boyfriend, a vampire; all with the hope of improving his marks during junior year. But not all goes as we plan, and while trying to avoid Henry, he runs into a Crone, and gets bitten. 
In a world where paranormal things are mostly illegal, Logan gets dragged into a scientific institution for study; and he's promised to recover his life and family if he sticks to human ideology. But again, things get even more complicated, as the Crone is decided to devour Logan, putting him into a situation that will force him to choose between going for the human life with his family, or embracing his paranormal nature as a Viceling, and accepting Henry as a part of his life.

Before we talk about the themes, it's important to talk a little about worldbuilding. While in Crescentville there are several paranormal creatures, most of them Vices (paranormal creatures that are bornt), paranormal activity is basically persecuted and forbidden, being treated with intolerance by the humans. 
There are institutions that try to maintain those paranormal creatures confined, and Crescentville Haven, the one where Logan gets dragged, it's trying to cure those who were haunted and transformed into Vicelings.

But the most important point in the novel is how this is a novel about how Logan has to deal with his nature, how he's forced into this "cure" treatment with the threat of losing his family and his life. He's a Viceling, and it's not something he has chosen to be; this cure is basically making him renounce a part of what he is: and his decision is highly pressured by those around him. There's something I couldn't take out of my head while reading, and it's how this is a big metaphor about how queer people are sometimes forced into renouncing what they are in order to fit in with what the people around them expect (and Bennet has crafted it in such a great way).

Romance elements are present but kinda tenuous. While the relationship between Henry and Logan is a key piece of the whole plot, as Henry represents the paranormal part of Logan's life, I think it's put into the plot in a really organic way; if you are looking for a spicy book, definitely this is not one.

Crescentville Haunting is a really brave novel, with an important message about self-acceptance. If you like young adult fantasy, or are in the look for a queer novel, certainly give it a try, because you won't be dissapointed.