Uncle Yuta's married! His new wife, Noriko, accepts the dual-natured secrets of his niece, the toki-girl Azuki and his nephew, the sparrow-boy Shota because Noriko has secrets of her own.Azuki worried about a lack of work; now she struggles to meet her obligations. Shota and Renko try to engineer a solution so Azuki can complete her work in time for Anko's wedding. Can Renko's mother, the pregnant Dragon Queen Rizantona, help? Tsuruko and her husband worry about their coming child. Will it be human, crane or both? Red Wind and Blackie hope their foal will be all horse. Soon, there will be babies everywhere, but who knows what they'll be!Despite her happiness with Yuta and his family, Noriko feels adrift in her new life and uncertain about her future. Can the solution lie in her past? With the help of the Dragon King, Noriko journeys to her childhood home and discovers a secret that shocks her. Will her past and her future finally align to allow her to establish herself happily in her new home with her new husband, his exceptional family and their expanding preternatural circle? Noriko's Journey is the fifth book in The Toki=Girl and the Sparrow-Boy series by accomplished author Claire Youmans. Set in a fantasy version of Meiji=era Japan, the series combines history, culture and folklore into the highly entertaining stories of Azuki and Shota, two children who can turn into birds, and their human and non-human family and friends. Reviewers call The Toki-Girl and the Sparrow-Boy "a lovely tale full of imagination," by an "amazing author" and a "well-written story that can be enjoyed by all."