I assume you're referring to Norse runes, specifically? Those are the only ones in common usage in the Neopagan community. Their most common use is often for divination, and this is a modern usage of the symbols rather than one we have any archeological evidence for. IIRC, we do have evidence that Norse runes were used for magical purposes, but it's difficult to infer exactly how they were used historically. So any book you would find on runic magic is going to be a modern construction anyway. You can trust them insofar as you recognize that it's a modern thing, not a historical thing, and that the meanings of the rune themselves will be to some extent reconstructed. IIRC, there is not even a consensus among scholars about what some of the runic characters mean, so you are not going to find rune meanings the same in books by occult writers either. That's been my experience when I've read books available on runes, but I can't say any of the ones I've read have stood out as particularly amazing so I have no recommendations.
In the modern day, you might as well use runes the same way you would use any kind of symbolic element in spellcraft or ritual. There are some, for example, who wear a runic symbol as an amulet for protection or as a talisman to bring the quality represented by the rune into their life. The rune meaning is where it can get tricky. Personally, I eschewed standard meanings altogether and meditated on each rune to derive a meaning independent from published books. That personal connection makes working with them much more meaningful to me.
