Fake Book Data API

Q: Are the ISBNs valid?

Structurally, yes — every isbn13 has a correct check digit, so it passes format validators. The numbers are fake: they don't resolve to real published books.

Q: Can I filter by genre or length?

Yes — genre restricts records to one genre and minPages/maxPages genuinely constrain the page count.

MOCK DATA

Fake books with genre-flavored titles, checksum-valid ISBN-13s, authors, page counts and invented publishers. Filter by genre and page range.

Generated test data for fixtures and development

Base URL: /api/books
Category: Text & Content
Capabilities: 1 route Seedable
Last updated: July 29, 2026

GET /api/books Generate fake book records Returns a list

Live requestRuns against the public API

No key required

GET/api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5

Request parameters

genre

Only generate books in this genre — the title is assembled from the genre's own word pools and the genre field matches. Omit for a random mix.

minPagesdefault 120

Minimum page count (inclusive). Must be ≤ maxPages.

maxPagesdefault 600

Maximum page count (inclusive). Must be ≥ minPages.

Advanced response options7 options

countdefault 10

How many records to generate (1–100).

seed

Deterministic output: the same seed always returns the same records. Omit for random (the used seed is echoed in meta.seed).

fields

Return only these fields (comma-separated). Mutually exclusive with 'exclude'.

exclude

Return all fields except these (comma-separated).

formatdefault json

Response format: json envelope, ndjson (one record per line) or csv.

prettydefault false

Pretty-print the JSON response.

unwrapdefault false

Drop the envelope: return the raw array/object without data/meta wrapper.

Response

Example parameters are ready. Send the request to inspect the live response.

Route reference

Code, request parameters, response fields and verified examples 10 params · 7 fields · 3 examples

Code samples Ready-to-copy requests in 4 languages

curl JavaScript Python PHP

curl "https://randomapi.dev/api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5"

const res = await fetch("https://randomapi.dev/api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5");
const { data, meta } = await res.json();

import requests

data = requests.get("https://randomapi.dev/api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5").json()["data"]

$json = json_decode(file_get_contents(
  "https://randomapi.dev/api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5"
), true);
$data = $json["data"];

Parameters Route-specific request inputs 3

Parameter	Type	Default & allowed	Description
`genre`	enum	allowed: fantasy \| scifi \| mystery \| thriller \| romance \| horror \| literary \| history \| biography \| selfhelp \| children \| poetry example: fantasy	Only generate books in this genre — the title is assembled from the genre's own word pools and the genre field matches. Omit for a random mix.
`minPages`	int	default: 120 allowed: 20 – 2000 example: 200	Minimum page count (inclusive). Must be ≤ maxPages.
`maxPages`	int	default: 600 allowed: 20 – 2000 example: 400	Maximum page count (inclusive). Must be ≥ minPages.

genre enum

Only generate books in this genre — the title is assembled from the genre's own word pools and the genre field matches. Omit for a random mix.

example: genre=fantasy

minPages int

Minimum page count (inclusive). Must be ≤ maxPages.

default: 120

allowed: 20 – 2000

example: minPages=200

maxPages int

Maximum page count (inclusive). Must be ≥ minPages.

default: 600

allowed: 20 – 2000

example: maxPages=400

Universal parameters Shared response and formatting options 7

Parameter	Type	Default & allowed	Description
`count`	int	default: 10 allowed: 1 – 100 example: 3	How many records to generate (1–100).
`seed`	int	example: 42	Deterministic output: the same seed always returns the same records. Omit for random (the used seed is echoed in meta.seed).
`fields`	list	example: title,author	Return only these fields (comma-separated). Mutually exclusive with 'exclude'.
`exclude`	list	example: publisher	Return all fields except these (comma-separated).
`format`	enum	default: json allowed: json \| ndjson \| csv example: csv	Response format: json envelope, ndjson (one record per line) or csv.
`pretty`	boolean	default: false example: true	Pretty-print the JSON response.
`unwrap`	boolean	default: false example: true	Drop the envelope: return the raw array/object without data/meta wrapper.

count int

How many records to generate (1–100).

default: 10

allowed: 1 – 100

example: count=3

seed int

Deterministic output: the same seed always returns the same records. Omit for random (the used seed is echoed in meta.seed).

example: seed=42

fields list

Return only these fields (comma-separated). Mutually exclusive with 'exclude'.

example: fields=title,author

exclude list

Return all fields except these (comma-separated).

example: exclude=publisher

format enum

Response format: json envelope, ndjson (one record per line) or csv.

default: json

allowed: json | ndjson | csv

example: format=csv

pretty boolean

Pretty-print the JSON response.

default: false

example: pretty=true

unwrap boolean

Drop the envelope: return the raw array/object without data/meta wrapper.

default: false

example: unwrap=true

Response schema Fields returned in each record 7

Field	Type	Description	Example
`title`	string	Genre-flavored title assembled from the genre's word pools.	The Ashen Throne of the Winter Court
`author`	string	Fake author full name (given name + family name).	Nora Bellamy
`isbn13`	string (ISBN-13)	13 digits starting with 978, with a valid ISBN-13 check digit (kept as a string to preserve leading digits). Not registered to a real book.	9781639284719
`genre`	string	One of the 12 genres; always matches the pools the title came from.	fantasy
`pages`	integer	Page count within minPages..maxPages (inclusive).	384
`publishedYear`	integer	Publication year, 1900 to the current year.	1987
`publisher`	string	Invented publishing house from a fixed fictional list — never a real company.	Hartwell & Sons

title string

Genre-flavored title assembled from the genre's word pools.

example: The Ashen Throne of the Winter Court

author string

Fake author full name (given name + family name).

example: Nora Bellamy

isbn13 string (ISBN-13)

13 digits starting with 978, with a valid ISBN-13 check digit (kept as a string to preserve leading digits). Not registered to a real book.

example: 9781639284719

genre string

One of the 12 genres; always matches the pools the title came from.

example: fantasy

pages integer

Page count within minPages..maxPages (inclusive).

example: 384

publishedYear integer

Publication year, 1900 to the current year.

example: 1987

publisher string

Invented publishing house from a fixed fictional list — never a real company.

example: Hartwell & Sons

Documented examples

Build-generated requests and complete responses 3

Five fantasy novels /api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5

GET /api/books?genre=fantasy&count=5

{
  "data": [
    {
      "title": "Sunken Grimoire",
      "author": "Kaylie Gorczany-Considine",
      "isbn13": "9785004797361",
      "genre": "fantasy",
      "pages": 296,
      "publishedYear": 2001,
      "publisher": "Thornquill Press"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Crown of Shadowfell",
      "author": "Waino Marvin",
      "isbn13": "9789125678875",
      "genre": "fantasy",
      "pages": 458,
      "publishedYear": 1984,
      "publisher": "Lanternlight Books"
    },
    {
      "title": "Ashen Crown",
      "author": "Hailee Streich",
      "isbn13": "9785050180360",
      "genre": "fantasy",
      "pages": 497,
      "publishedYear": 1964,
      "publisher": "Marlowe & Finch"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Fabled Throne",
      "author": "Otis Hodkiewicz",
      "isbn13": "9789863190998",
      "genre": "fantasy",
      "pages": 191,
      "publishedYear": 2026,
      "publisher": "Copperbeam Books"
    },
    {
      "title": "Ashen Grimoire",
    …
    "generatedAt": "2026-07-29T08:13:22.000Z"
  }
}

Reproducible epics over 500 pages /api/books?minPages=500&maxPages=1200&seed=42&count=3

GET /api/books?minPages=500&maxPages=1200&seed=42&count=3

{
  "data": [
    {
      "title": "The Effigy of the Attic",
      "author": "Kaylie Gorczany-Considine",
      "isbn13": "9780047973635",
      "genre": "horror",
      "pages": 1061,
      "publishedYear": 1969,
      "publisher": "Foxglove Press"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Shattered Dragon of Stormhold",
      "author": "Waino Marvin",
      "isbn13": "9781256788775",
      "genre": "fantasy",
      "pages": 967,
      "publishedYear": 1949,
      "publisher": "Copperbeam Books"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Penguin of the Blueberry Patch",
      "author": "Hailee Streich",
      "isbn13": "9780501803676",
      "genre": "children",
      "pages": 853,
      "publishedYear": 1925,
      "publisher": "Thornquill Press"
    }
  ],
  "meta": {
    "endpoint": "books",
    "count": 3,
    "seed": 42,
    "params": {
      "minPages": 500,
      "maxPages": 1200
    },
    "generatedAt": "2026-07-29T08:13:22.000Z"
  }
}

Short children's picture books /api/books?genre=children&minPages=20&maxPages=48&count=10

GET /api/books?genre=children&minPages=20&maxPages=48&count=10

{
  "data": [
    {
      "title": "Giggly Firefly",
      "author": "Kaylie Gorczany-Considine",
      "isbn13": "9785004797361",
      "genre": "children",
      "pages": 30,
      "publishedYear": 2001,
      "publisher": "Thornquill Press"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Bear Cub of the Blueberry Patch",
      "author": "Waino Marvin",
      "isbn13": "9789125678875",
      "genre": "children",
      "pages": 40,
      "publishedYear": 1984,
      "publisher": "Lanternlight Books"
    },
    {
      "title": "Snuggly Bear Cub",
      "author": "Hailee Streich",
      "isbn13": "9785050180360",
      "genre": "children",
      "pages": 42,
      "publishedYear": 1964,
      "publisher": "Marlowe & Finch"
    },
    {
      "title": "The Brave Acorn",
      "author": "Otis Hodkiewicz",
      "isbn13": "9789863190998",
      "genre": "children",
      "pages": 24,
      "publishedYear": 2026,
      "publisher": "Copperbeam Books"
    },
    {
      "title": "Snuggly Firefly",
    …
    "generatedAt": "2026-07-29T08:13:22.000Z"
  }
}

About this API

Coverage, behavior and common use cases

Coverage & behavior

Generates believable book records for library and bookstore demos. Titles are assembled from per-genre word pools (adjective + noun + motif), so ?genre=fantasy really returns things like The Ashen Throne of the Winter Court — never a cookbook. The genre field always matches the pools the title was built from; omit genre for a random mix across all 12.

Every isbn13 is a 13-digit Bookland EAN that starts with 978 and carries a valid ISBN-13 check digit, so it passes any standard ISBN validator or barcode renderer. Honesty note: the nine digits between the prefix and the check digit are random — these ISBNs are not registered to real books. Likewise every publisher is an invented house (e.g. Hartwell & Sons) drawn from a fixed fictional list, never a real company, and authors are fake names.

minPages/maxPages bound the pages field inclusively (defaults 120–600, hard limits 20–2000); minPages above maxPages is a 400, not a silent fix. publishedYear falls between 1900 and the current year. With a seed the same request returns byte-identical books forever.

Use it for

Seed a library, bookstore or reading-app demo with genre-consistent inventory
Test ISBN validation and barcode rendering against checksum-valid ISBN-13s
Reproducible catalog fixtures via seed — the same shelf in every CI run

Frequently asked questions

Practical answers about this endpoint 3

Are the ISBNs valid?

Structurally, yes — every isbn13 has a correct check digit, so it passes format validators. The numbers are fake: they don't resolve to real published books.

Can I filter by genre or length?

Yes — genre restricts records to one genre and minPages/maxPages genuinely constrain the page count.

Are these real books?

No — titles, authors and publishers are generated, and the endpoint is honestly badged mock. For real reference data, this isn't it.

Standards & references

Primary sources behind the contract

International ISBN Agency (ISO 2108)

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