Subprime provides the reader with a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the highly charged and unscrupulous world of mortgage lending, the very instrument that precipitated the economic meltdown.

Set against the backdrop of greedy investors who bilk credit-blemished borrowers, the book delves into a toxic mix of character traits portrayed by an uncle and his nephew. One is elderly, rich, inflexible and jaded while the other is young, poor, pliable, and naïve.

The conflict between the two manifests itself as the nephew struggles with a sense of morality while his uncle weaves a cancerous web of extortion and deceit. Once the nephew extricates himself from his uncle's grasp, he falls into an abyss of his own making as power, lust and ambition continue to cloud his vision.