No, they are not reliable in the sense that they can be used without fear by the simple faithful. (For that matter, many Catholic books, such as the NAB/RE and the New Jerome Commentary, aren’t fit for the simple faithful either.) They may contain, aside from anti-Catholicism, grave errors in doctrine and on matters of morality. If you are well-educated in your faith and have read the book and acted as a sort of censor, and verified it to be compliant with Catholic teaching (which, most aren’t: even the most ecumenical is likely to be heretical on the point of how Jesus atoned for the sins of the world), possibly. An Evangelical author is out to make converts of Catholics, as evangelicals believe that Catholics don’t have the “true Gospel”, and they are “Roman Papists”, etc., and even if not explicit, this view will implicitly color the work.
For someone who is well-grounded in faith and with prior, solid theological, Biblical, and philosophical learning - for those who are able to discern the truth from the lies, and are willing to spend the effort of reading critically instead of passively in order to do this - I believe some Protestant works can hold value. If this is not the case - if the person is not equipped, able, and willing, strong and secure in the true faith, to read the work critically, to take its teaching with a grain of salt and to compare it to the well-learned canons of the Catholic Church and its true doctrine and theology, to discern truth and discard error - essentially, to dissect the book as much as read it - I would in no circumstances believe it to be acceptable, and would suggest in the strongest terms possible that the idea should not even be entertained.
I believe in one of the old Catechisms there’s a statement that goes, for the Bible itself, something like, “What am I to do if I am given or come to possess a Protestant Bible?”, and answer being, “Turn it in to your priest or burn it.”
For an alternative along the lines of what I think you mentioned, I would recommend the works by Jeff Cavins, such as “The Great Adventure”, or, for a slightly more pastoral and theological discussion, the Bible handbook “Pathways in Scripture” by Winzen, or, for something in the “Protestant style”, Scott Hahn.
