38 NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL (Continued on page 40) In The Ambassador’s Leadership Edge, she draws on three decades of diplomatic service, including two ambassadorial appointments, to distill lessons from global leadership into actionable strategies for Latina professionals and other women of color. Through her signature framework of “power, presence, and purpose,” she shares with readers how to navigate complex organizations, cultivate strategic alliances, strengthen influence, and rise with confidence, empowering them to lead with authenticity, intentionality, and strategy. Maria Brewer joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1996 and served with the State Department for 29 years, including as ambassador to Sierra Leone and Lesotho. Femme Led: Hard-Learned Lessons from Women in Leadership Sierra Melcher, et al., Red Thread Publishing, 2026, $19.99/paperback, e-book available, 198 pages. Leadership has long been defined by systems that reward dominance, extraction, certainty, and visibility at all costs. This award-winning anthology challenges that narrative, bringing together women who are leading differently, through lived experience, integrity, relational intelligence, courage, and choice. Rather than offering a single definition of leadership, Femme Led presents a collective reimagining: leadership as actually lived by women today. The 16 contributors—including Foreign Service spouse Tracy MacDonald—are founders, creatives, entrepreneurs, educators, healers, and changemakers who have turned ideas into impact and values into action, often without permission and rarely by following the script. FS family member Tracy MacDonald is the author of chapter 5, “Becoming Brave,” in the anthology. She is married to Diplomatic Security Agent Brad MacDonald. Together, they have served in Gabon, Honduras, Egypt, and Swaziland. The Art of Strategic Humanity: Leadership Lessons from the Frontlines of Diplomacy Carrie Muntean, independently published, 2026, $10.99/paperback, e-book available, 130 pages. This book focuses on how to lead with what the author calls “strategic humanity,” which she describes as balancing your head (logic), heart (compassion), and spine (courage). It focuses on being a balanced leader for yourself, your team, and your organization. Make sure to also check out a leadership self-assessment the author offers at https://strategic-humanity.com. Carrie Muntean was a consular officer with the State Department from 2001 to 2025 and served in Luanda, London, Panama, Moscow, Managua, Porto Alegre, and Washington, D.C. Retiring at the rank of counselor in the Senior Foreign Service, she now works as a leadership coach. POLICY/ISSUES Transatlantic Fracture: The Erosion of U.S.-European Relations in an Unstable Order Stefan Fröhlich, Jackson Janes, and Jeffrey Rathke, Springer Nature, 2026, $44.99/paperback, e-book available, 96 pages. Transatlantic Fracture provides a comprehensive overview of the evolving transatlantic relationship in light of recent domestic upheavals in the United States, which have lasting effects on foreign and security policy. With the liberal international order under increasing strain, Europe must respond to shifting global dynamics with strategic foresight and resilience. The authors share their insights into how Europe can address these challenges and what they mean for the future of the global order. Co-author Jeffrey Rathke was a State Department Foreign Service officer from 1991 to 2015. His postings included Moscow, Berlin, Brussels (NATO international staff), Kuala Lumpur, Riga, and Dublin.
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