Jones was born Adrienne Applewhite on July 28, 1915 in Atlanta, Georgia; attended UCLA, 1958-59 and UC Irvine, 1972; worked as an office and managerial worker, cattle rancher, and with youth groups; a free-lance writer and novelist, she is the author of many books, including: Ride the Far wind (1964), Another Place, Another Spring (1971), So, Nothing is Forever (1974), The Hawks of Chelney (1977), The Beckoner (1980), Whistle Down a Dark Lane (1982), A Matter of Spunk (1983), Street Family (1987), and Long Time Passing (1990).

At the age of seven, she moved to California with her family. Her home life and schooling in Beverly Hills instilled an early passion for books and story-writing. A yearning for adventure and a real love for the natural scene carried her on explorations of California's desserts, canyons, mountains and coastline. After her marriage, she lived in the hills near Laguna Beach with her husband.