The Hollow Boys · 2021
The Lies We StealSpice level, tropes & is it dark romance?
by Monty Jay
Spice 4/5 (Explicit) · Darkness 5/5 (No light) · 11 trigger warnings flagged
From Monty Jay, 2021: The Lies We Steal, book 1 of The Hollow Boys. Expect academy, arranged marriage, revenge, gothic, morally grey and enemies to lovers. We score it spice 4 (explicit) and darkness 5 (pitch black). The heaviest flags readers report are murder, violence, death. Our scores lean on what readers report, not on a full reread, so treat them as a guide. This note is ours. It is not a publisher blurb.
First published: 2021. Book 1 of The Hollow Boys.
The Lies We Steal tropes
On this shelf, The Lies We Steal is filed under Dark academy romance, Arranged marriage, Revenge romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes and Enemies to lovers. Each tag opens more books with that trope.
The Lies We Steal spice level
Is The Lies We Steal dark romance?
Yes, at the very dark end. The Lies We Steal scores 5 of 5 on our darkness scale (No light).
Spice and darkness are separate scores. More no light books. How we rate.
The Lies We Steal trigger warnings
Book-specific flags taken from reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 52 readers), grouped by us. Also on that list: sexual content, trafficking, animal cruelty, animal death, schizophrenia/psychosis, suicidal thoughts, gun violence, injury/injury detail, toxic relationship, mental illness. See the reader-submitted list.
Graphic (11) — open before you read
Open this before you read. These are the flags most likely to be a hard stop.
Moderate (0)
Harm, control, or obsession that is common in this lane.
None flagged in this band.
Minor (0)
Present, and usually not the reason someone puts the book down.
None flagged in this band.
Full The Lies We Steal trigger warnings
The Hollow Boys reading order
The Lies We Steal is book 1 of 5 in Monty Jay's The Hollow Boys series. Start here.
- Book 1 The Lies We Steal (this book) · 2021
- Book 2 The Truths We Burn · 2022
- Book 3 The Blood We Crave: Part One · 2022
- Book 4 The Blood We Crave: Part Two · 2023
- Book 5 The Oath We Give · 2023
Order checked against the StoryGraph The Hollow Boys series page on 13 October 2026. The The Hollow Boys series in order.
Who it's for
Shelf note written for this site. We do not copy reviews or publisher blurbs. Outbound links are search pages, not quoted ratings. Kindle Unlimited and endings are only flagged when we were willing to mark them. How we rate.
Missing a book? Suggest it.
Books like The Lies We Steal
Matched on shared tropes, then the closest spice and darkness scores. Other books in the same series are listed above, not here.
- The Oath We Give
The Oath We Give
Monty Jay
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Enemies to lovers, Revenge romance
- The Blood We Crave: Part One
The Blood We Crave: Part One
Monty Jay
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Revenge romance, Gothic romance
- Kiss the Villain
Kiss the Villain
Rina Kent
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Morally grey heroes, Enemies to lovers
- Endless Anger
Endless Anger
Sav R. Miller
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Dark academy romance, Enemies to lovers
- North of the Stars
North of the Stars
Monica James
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Arranged marriage, Enemies to lovers
- Riot Rules
Riot Rules
Callie Hart
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Enemies to lovers, Morally grey heroes
- The Foiled Plan
The Foiled Plan
Veronica Lancet
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Enemies to lovers, Revenge romance
- Dante
Dante
Sadie Kincaid
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Arranged marriage, Enemies to lovers
Books like The Lies We Steal, with a reason for each
Questions readers actually ask
What is the spice level of The Lies We Steal?
The Lies We Steal spice level is 4 of 5 (Explicit). On-page sex, clearly written. Darkness is a separate score: 5 of 5 (No light).
What are the The Lies We Steal trigger warnings?
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Death, Blood, Torture, Kidnapping, Gore, Bullying, Grief, Psychological abuse, Stalking. Moderate: none flagged. Minor: none flagged. These are book-specific flags reported by readers on reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 52 readers), grouped by us. The author's own note may list more. Read it before you start.
Is The Lies We Steal dark romance?
Yes, at the very dark end. The Lies We Steal scores 5 of 5 on our darkness scale (No light). The book is not interested in pulling the punch.
What tropes are in The Lies We Steal?
On this shelf The Lies We Steal is filed under Dark academy romance, Arranged marriage, Revenge romance, Gothic romance, Morally grey heroes and Enemies to lovers.
Who is The Lies We Steal for?
Pick this up if you want academy and arranged marriage with explicit spice. Check the trigger warnings before you start.
What are some books like The Lies We Steal?
Matched on shared tropes and similar spice and darkness: The Oath We Give by Monty Jay; The Blood We Crave: Part One by Monty Jay; Kiss the Villain by Rina Kent; Endless Anger by Sav R. Miller; North of the Stars by Monica James; Riot Rules by Callie Hart. More read-alikes, each with a reason, are on zademasked.com/like/the-lies-we-steal.
Is The Lies We Steal a standalone?
No. The Lies We Steal is book 1 of 5 in the The Hollow Boys series by Monty Jay.
What order should I read the The Hollow Boys series in?
1. The Lies We Steal; 2. The Truths We Burn; 3. The Blood We Crave: Part One; 4. The Blood We Crave: Part Two; 5. The Oath We Give.
How many books are in the The Hollow Boys series?
The The Hollow Boys series by Monty Jay has 5 main books.
What is the The Lies We Steal age rating?
We'd say 18+. Spice sits at 4/5 (explicit) and darkness at 5/5 (no light). That's our recommendation, not an official rating, so read the trigger warnings as well.
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