A reciprocal link is a link you receive from a site that you're linking to. I think they're pointless. Its best to receive links from websites without having to link back.
Use the strategies that you know work, whether white hat or black white. Ultimately, testing will determine what strategies you should stick with. However, try to keep it as clean as possible.
With all the changes Google has made over the years, I'm not sure how I feel about SEO anymore. Of course it will always exist, as there will always be a Google algorithm, yet I think the SEO is fading.