Sanctuary: A Miss Marple Short Story

Miss Marple #SS 19

by Agatha Christie

Bunch, engrossed in her flower arrangements for the church, is putting the chrysanthemums in place when she sees a man crumpled over the chancel steps. Dying. The man can only utter one word, “sanctuary.” No one at the vicarage understands what he means, and nothing can be done to prevent his death.

When his relatives promptly arrive to pick up his possessions, Bunch can’t get the word out of her head. She knows just who to turn to, her godmother Miss Marple. Who is this man, and what does “sanctuary” mean to him? What Bunch and Miss Marple discover is more exciting than anything that could be expected to happen in a sleepy village like Chipping Cleghorn.

Librarian's note: this entry relates to the short story, "Sanctuary." Collections and the other stories by the author are located elsewhere on Goodreads. The Miss Marple series includes twelve novels and 20 short stories. Entries for the short stories can be found by searching Goodreads for: "a Miss Marple Short Story."

Genres: Mystery, Agatha Christie, Short Stories, Audiobook, Crime, Fiction, Classics

38 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 1954

About the author

Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.

This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.

Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A man dies from a gunshot wound in the parson's wife's arms, whispering the word sanctuary with his dying breath.
A little dramatic, no?



And yet.
Diana Harmon, the parson's wife aka Bunch (I just love these old nicknames), is confused and startled by the whole thing, but she's a level-headed woman and reacts accordingly, sending for both the doctor and the police. So it's not until the dead man's sister and her husband show up, asking what his last words were and wanting to take his blood-stained jacket home with them for sentimental reasons, that Bunch's suspicions take her to her back to her St. Mary Mead to seek the advice of Jane Marple.



Miss Marple and Bunch run a sting with the help of Jane's constable friends and uncover some shady thieves. Along the way, they also uncover a romantic tale of a dancer and her jewels, a daring prison escape, and a little orphan girl.



Originally published in 1954 in This Week magazine using the title Murder at the Vicarage, but this is not the same Miss Marple story as THE Murder at the Vicarage.

Read in the short story collection Double Sin and Other Stories & Midwinter Murder: Fireside Tales from the Queen of Mystery

[EveStar91 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Up till now the man’s eyes had been closed but at this point they suddenly opened and fixed themselves on Bunch’s face. They were neither dazed nor wandering. They seemed fully alive and intelligent. His lips moved, and Bunch bent forward to catch the words, or rather the word. It was only one word that he said: ‘Sanctuary.’

Bunch's little village and gets a taste of mafia dealings when a lone man gets into the church claiming sanctuary and dies immediately. Bunch, a long time friend of Miss Marple's, discusses this with her, including the strange questions of the man's 'sister' and the cryptic note she found sewn in the coat.

Sanctuary has a bit more cinematic drama than Christie's usual, with long lost daughters, theater dancers, jewels, snooping and reconnaissance, with a happy ending palatable to all, needless to say with Jane Marple's help. Bunch and Jane keep the plot running, though the other characters are a bit over the top. On the whole, enough fun with a dose of espionage.

🌟🌟🌟
[Half a star for the premise; Half a star for the characters; One star for the plot; 3/4 star for the writing; Half a star for the world-building - 3 stars in total.]

[Mónica Cordero Thomson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entretenido relato corto en el que aparece mi querida Señora Marple.

[Cyndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dying man comes into a church and asks for sanctuary. Miss Marple helps the police and church figure out what he was seeking sanctuary from. Once again Dame Agatha packs a whole novel into a small space brilliantly.

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. More of a chase than some other Miss Marple stories. Her ingenuity shines in this one. A good way to conclude the collection of twenty in "Miss Marple: the Complete Short Stories" from 2011. The story first came out in "This Week" in 1954. Diana Harmon, nicknamed "Bunch" and we find out she is also Miss Marple's goddaughter, discovers a man on the edge of death next to the alter of the church where her husband, Julian, is the vicar. He mutters, "Sanctuary," and also something which sounds like her husband's name. He's been shot and soon dies without saying much else. Of course a doctor and the police are called, as well as his next of kin. But something else is not right. Why did he come here? Chipping Cleghorn is out of the way. Bunch travels to London to see Miss M. who is staying at Raymond and Jane West's apartment while they visit America. It's one of the most obvious times in the series when a person involved in a mystery wisely goes straight to Miss Marple. "I think I ought to go and see Aunt Jane." She gets the help she needs as Miss Marple devises a plan to catch a murderer or two. (December 2020)

[Madeline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good little mystery.

[Lovely Day · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5⭐️

Why do these short story mysteries often feel like they have no end?!?!?
The crime wasn’t even resolved properly…

[Leya · Rating 3 out of 5]

So a dying man only utters one word, “sanctuary” and Miss Marple is able to solve the mystery of the dying man. This is some serious detective sloth.

[Catherine Vamianaki · Rating 5 out of 5]

a great book

[a ☕︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

a vicar’s wife stumbles upon a dying man in the church after picking chrysanthemums. before passing away, he murmurs one word: sanctuary. the vicar’s wife senses that something is off after meeting the man’s rather more coarse relatives and goes to visit miss marple in order to run her suspicions by her. obviously the police get involved, and a dreamily tragic backstory eventually comes to light...i loved especially the relationship between the vicar and his wife: he continued for some time with his exposition but was, as often, disconcerted by his wife’s reception of his erudite pronouncement. “darling,” she said. “you are sweet.” bending over, she kissed him on the tip of his nose. julian felt rather like a dog who has been congratulated on performing a clever trick. lol.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a fan of Agatha Christie, I picked this e-book up from by local library. It was part of a set of twelve novellas Midwinter Murder: Fireside Tales from the Queen of Mystery. I found each individual story entertaining with a great mystery. I would recommond to readers of Agatha Christie. 2023

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Available as a short story purchase on kindle or as part of the collection “Miss Marple’s Final Cases”.

One of the better openings to an Agatha Christie short story which wonderfully sets the scene in mood and light. Set initially in the church and vicarage at Chipping Cleghorn where fans will recall “A Murder is Announced” took place.

While it is a Jane Marple tale the star of the episode is undoubtedly, the vicar’s wife, Mrs Harmon aka ‘Bunch’. She is fearless, resourceful and full of common sense.

I love it that she is suspicious of the events leading to a man’s death; his words spoken and the insincere visit from his ‘sister’. Bunch thinks on her feet, understands what “Sanctuary” may mean and to resolve the mystery declares ‘I think I ought to go and see Aunt Jane’

Interestingly, it is Bunch who brings the case to Miss Marple to solve. This makes this story such a satisfying one for me and equally shows why so many people enjoy a Miss Marple mystery.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

a stranger is found inside a church dying from a bullet wound. His siblings soon come to collect his things but apparently don’t know his full name nor do they seem to be grieving. The vicar’s wife is suspicious and takes a coat check ticket from the dead man to Miss Marple and they devise a scheme to catch the fake siblings. Apparently the dead man had stolen unrecoverable gems that were sewn into a costume from his days in the theater and the men who killed her were after the gems. He was bringing them to town to see to the care of his daughter.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Usually short stories don't allow authors to do proper character studies while exhibiting brilliant deductions etc. Dame Chrisite is an exception in this regard. This short story, which truly showcases Miss Marple's abilites while displaying a wide range of characters, is a classic example.
Witty observations. Loveable characters. Brilliant deductions.
In short, a Miss Marple special tale.

[Ozana Ozzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who doesn't love Agatha Cristie's most popular sluths/detectives, Miss. Marple and Helcule Poirot. Even with tv series, reading it, you can imagine them quite well, with their little foibles and quirks.

[Brianna Bello · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t see the ending of this one coming. How it all unfolded was told so nicely, and the ending definitely made me a little sad.

[Sophie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well... nothing much happened, did it?

[Joop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leuk kort Miss Marple verhaal

[As You Wish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never knew where the story was going next. A quiet morning for the vicar’s wife becomes a clandestine murder investigation. Her instincts were right on the money. The people around these murder victims are lucky to fall into good hands. I think I enjoy that a lot about Agatha Christie on this recent foray into her writings. I haven't picked up one of her books since I was 12 or 13!

[WR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ohhh how I miss Miss Marple!

[Darinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story featuring Miss Marple. Light and entertaining.

[Anne-Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt involved, solved the case before the end, it was fantastic.

[Sherri · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I think I ought to go and see Aunt Jane.”

An entertaining Miss Marple short story.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book description outlines the plot well.

The final short story is the most "action packed" one of them, and entertaining to read. The solution unfolds at the end and was nothing the reader could have really guessed. It was not so much about the "who did it" but rather about the story behind the dead man.

[هبة نجاعي · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sanctuary is one of the stories that was Miss Marple her hero, a clever old woman whose life relates to crimes. As Agatha Christie usually wrote, she makes events realistic and consistent with characters, perhaps because of her life experience that totally fascinated me when I read her autobiography.

In this story, there was a man killed discovered by Bunch, the priest's wife, in a sanctuary of a church. She went to seek help from Miss Marple to find the key of the crime riddle and solve it. This is - briefly- the summary, but I think that any summary can't be a substitute for reading the story, because detective novels are not to summarise, but only to read.

I highly recommend reading this story by Agatha Christie and the other stories in the same book, because it provides a lot of information and makes the reader interact with the story by trying to solve its mystery in a smart way.

[mairiachi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars. This was a really good short story. You don't understand anything until the very end. And it's nice that the stuff you guess, Bunch guesses too. One of the things I hate in books is when you can tell right off the bat what's wrong and the main character takes forever to realize it. Thankfully, Bunch notices everything the reader notices - and nothing more - so there's enough interest to stay hooked.

It's a very good short story. Not aMAZING, but in contrast to most short stories, it's 4.5 stars worth.

[Edna · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of Christie's short stories that reminds me why I don't care for short stories - they're too short. In fact, it was so short, I had to go back a read the ending again - where did people and the situation tie in together? This was a story line could have been drawn out with a few more twists and turns.

[A.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The vicars’ wife finds a dying man in the chapel, and she is not so nearly dim witted as she makes herself out to be. So when his relatives come calling for his belongings she is clever enough to contact her godmother Jane Marple. Why would a man who committed suicide be asking for sanctuary?
4 stars

[Serena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miss Marple: the Complete Short Stories

Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again

[Shinjini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story though I wish it was longer. The ending was a little unclear and the plot was good enough to have been made into a full length book. Incidentally, this was my first time reading a Miss Marple story and I am looking forward to reading more books featuring the character.