Narrator's tiny summarizing-emphasizing tail sentences-addendums are cringe.

"All patients but her had visitors regularly: relatives, friends, even work colleagues. They all had *someone.*"

"Even when the odds are impossible, a cowardly but decent fellow would still try to help. He'd run for a backup. Call the police. Yell for attention. *Something.*"

"As soon as he saw the suspect, he just had to call the Bureau. That was all he had to do. No more than that."

Modern bestselling trash is full of them. But it prolly does mirror modern speech patterns. The pattern's called I need to prove something to these feeble-minded on social media, but in anticipation of scattered attention, doubt, and confrontation I must reinforce it, as with "Period," Trust me" and "No cap on god bro."

Aug 2

I don't say that's all there's to it. 'Twas a random thought. I recognize some other contributors. The author's trying to convey the feelings of the POV characters: brooding, agitated, pacing an idea like one would pace a room, trying to convince themselves more than the reader. But it's still bleh. Don't.