THE HUNT, A MURDER MYSTERY BY MIDDLEBURG author Jan Neuharth, has been named as one of three finalists in the 2004 Benjamin Franklin Awards competition in the Mystery/Suspense category. The Benjamin Franklin Awards, sponsored by the Publishers Marketing Association, recognize excellence in independent publishing. The Award winners will be announced at a ceremony on June 2, 2004, in Chicago, IL.

The Hunt has also been nominated for a Library of Virginia Literary Award in the fiction category. The 7th Annual Library of Virginia Awards Celebration honors outstanding works by Virginia authors and will be held on October 16, 2004.

Set in the historic Virginia hunt country, The Hunt tells the story of Doug Cummings, an attractive, wealthy lawyer and horseman, who is the target of a twisted but clever scheme to frame him for murder. With the media breathing down his neck, targeting him as the prime suspect, Doug races to solve the mystery of who is after him before he is tried and convicted by the law or the court of public opinion.

Neuharth authentically depicts the scenic, small-town community of Middleburg, and the close-knit foxhunting crowd that lives here. As the plot twist and turns, it carries the reader into the mysterious, romanticized lifestyle of the old-money, tweedy, equestrian set.

The Hunt, published by Paper Chase Farms Publishing Group of Middleburg, is available at many area bookstores, tack shops and gift shops and online at www.thehunt.us.

Neuharth resides in Middleburg with her husband Joseph Keusch, who is a Joint Master of the Fairfax Hunt, and their two children.