The Revenge Club, a six-episode crime drama featuring Line of Duty’s Martin Compston and Shetland’s Douglas Henshall, launches on Paramount+ on December 12, adapted from J.D. Pennington’s bestselling novel The Othello Club
The show has been adapted from The Othello Club(Image: PARAMOUNT PLUS)
A riveting drama series, starring a top-notch British ensemble including Martin Compston and Shetland’s Douglas Henshall, is slated to debut this week, as announced by streaming behemoth Paramount+.
This comes as viewers remain engrossed in a nail-biting political thriller and another crime series, according to the Mirror. The six-part adaptation is based on a bestselling novel that has recently hit the bookshelves and quickly ensnared readers with its ominous plotline.
One reader gave it a five-star rating, headlining their Amazon review: “A real page turner.” They enthused: “Great characters, excellent plot and so many twists and turns. Read it! !”. In contrast, another reviewer lauded the book as “phenomenal” and proclaimed: “If you read one book before the year ends I 100% recommend this one!”
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Intriguing and masterful novel
A third highly-regarded critic wrote: “A BRILLIANT dark and twisty psychological thriller and hands down one of my top reads of the year. Such an intriguing hook, masterful plotting, and an eclectic array of characters who get under your skin and will have you constantly changing your mind. Also loved the creeping sense of unease that builds to a tense and shocking finale,” reports the Express.
Martin Compston and Douglas Henshall in the crime thriller(Image: PARAMOUNT PLUS)
Meanwhile, a fourth reviewer awarded the novel 5/5 stars, headlining their review: “Hooked, gripping page turner!” They continued: “The final twist has me very much looking forwards to what’s more to come from this wordy, on trend author!” Another labeled it an “excellent read” and noted: “The only problem with this book is that it’s impossible to put down! ! Totally hooked from the first page. Great plot. Loved it.”
J.D. Pennington’s The Othello Club arrived in bookstores in October 2025 and follows a group of bitter divorcees plotting revenge for their broken hearts. The six strangers, brought together by a divorce support group, come from completely different backgrounds, each bearing their own emotional wounds with only their pain binding them together.
What starts as innocent pranks, including rodent infestations and fake fortune telling, rapidly escalates into a deadly accident, leaving the group with blood on their hands. The members become increasingly bold in their plots as the line between revenge and madness begins to blur – and someone might just reach the breaking point.
Paramount+ has adapted the novel into The Revenge Club, featuring a star-studded cast that includes Douglas Henshall from Shetland, Martin Compston of Line of Duty fame, Aimee-Ffion Edwards from Peaky Blinders, Meera Syal of Goodness Gracious Me, Sharon Rooney from Black Mirror, Chaneil Kular of Sex Education, Amit Shah from Happy Valley, and Niamh Walsh of Jamestown.
The drama boasts a stellar British cast(Image: PARAMOUNT PLUS)
Speaking about the journey of turning the book into a television series, author and executive producer Pennington said: “Obviously there was a divergence from the book and the TV series which is inevitable in the adaptation process. But the way I see it is the readers of my book will get one experience out of it, and then they’ll get a new experience out of watching the series, which is still true to the book, but there’ll be some new, unexpected twists and plot points that they can enjoy through that as well.”
Pennington added: “Then of course anyone who hasn’t read the book it doesn’t make any difference, they can just enjoy the series.”
Screenwriter Gabbie Asher shared her thoughts on adapting the book for the small screen, stating: “I kept the brilliant central concept from the book, the six divorcees meeting and making a revenge pact. But beyond that, everything was created specifically for TV: the characters, the relationships and the way the story evolves because it does become something else and if anyone reads the book it’s fantastic, it would have been very difficult to take it as it is, for various reasons – I don’t want to do spoilers – but that would have been quite challenging.”
‘Launching pad’
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She continued: “So we tried to take as much of the essence as possible, and so rather than faithfully adapting every element it just used the concept as a launching pad to explore the themes of pain, betrayal and what people are capable of when they’re pushed to their limits.”
Asher also disclosed how she effortlessly penned the script after reading the novel, with the storyline pouring out of her onto the pages. Remarkably, she wrapped up the screenplay for the pilot episode in just three weeks.
The Revenge Club is set to make its debut on Paramount+ UK & Ireland on December 12th.
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