book talk: Caught Dead in Philadelphia

I've been trying to read more mysteries to improve my understanding of the genre (and therefore make the one I'm writing (?) better), but I'm not sure this one really helped...

Caught Dead in Philadelphia, by Gillian Roberts, introduces English-teacher heroine Amanda Pepper right before her flighty fellow teacher is killed in her Philadelphia home. She investigates the murder with a handsome detective. This is just one step up from a "cozy," without much on-screen violence, and would be good for tame readers who like female heroines and want something more modern than Agatha Christie.